Photos made for Taproot Edmonton’s latest project, Housing Complex - What works, what doesn’t, and what can be done to improve Edmonton’s housing system

I’ve been a fan of what Taproot has been doing with local journalism and thoughtful storytelling for a while now so it was an honour when they reached out to help create imagery for this special project. My main job was to make portraits of the 12 people featured in a series of vignettes based on interviews by writer, Eric Rice. Eric drove me around and I pointed the camera.

Here’s a snippet from the intro by Tim Querengesser for what this is all about -

“These are a few of the glimpses into the lives of people in various roles within Edmonton’s housing ecosystem gathered for a project we’re calling Housing Complex. Like all ecosystems, each of the positions these people occupy is interrelated. Some win. Many feel conflicted, or like they’re treading water. Some lose in awful ways. But to change Edmonton’s housing ecosystem to ensure fewer people lose will mean affecting all involved — whether by forcing them to accept density in their backyards, slowing the speed at which their home grows in value, controlling rent increases, or investing public money to create more housing for people the system leaves out. That means changing anything related to housing is complex..Our series aims to equip you to ask good questions, make informed decisions, and help effect the change you want if you see room for improvement.”

Thank you to Karen, Mack, Tim, and Stephanie from Taproot for allowing me to play a part in this impactful work and for the editorial trust with my photography. Thank you to all the interviewees for showing me around and allowing me to photograph you in your spaces. And thank you to Eric, my lighting assistant/chauffeur/distractor for candid moments. It truly means a lot to have been able to make these pictures the way that I was given freedom to.