In mid-2014, South African photographer Pieter Hugo, then an artist-in-residence at Sausalito’s Headlands Center for the Arts, took a stroll with his wife through downtown San Francisco. As they passed homeless people in the Tenderloin District, Hugo’s wife began drawing parallels between the destitute neighborhood and the apartheid of their home, Cape Town. (Both cities are known for primarily Black populations and economic inequality.)
Hugo wasn’t put off; he was intrigued. He visited the area regularly over several months, taking photos of the residents and documenting their stories.
“What interested me in the Tenderloin was it was beautiful, tragic, free, tolerant at the same time,” he says.
A decade later, Hugo is returning to show the fruit of his excursions in “Californian Wildflowers,” a photo exhibit opening Sept. 12 at Jonathan Carver Moore gallery in Tenderloin. The presentation, marking the first time the photos are being shown in the area where they were taken, precedes the release of a coffee table book of the same name.
Hugo, who hasn’t been in contact with the subjects of his photos, calls the Tenderloin art gallery the ideal venue for his showcase. Speaking from his Cape Town home, he says, “It’s a welcome circumstance. I have been sitting on the work for 10 years; I have been waiting for the right soul-and-body match for it to go into the world. Carver Moore seemed like the perfect fit.”
He recalls how, despite being an outsider to both the neighborhood and the country, Tenderloin residents were forthcoming with their stories and comfortable posing for photos.
“I found it easy to connect with the subjects,” he says. “It is a personality thing. Also, after a few weeks people start recognizing you and our paths cross regularly.” It didn’t take long for him to notice that the area has its own unique identity akin to The Castro or Chinatown, though the Tenderloin isn’t a similar tourist destination.
“The sense of community pride impressed me. Seeing people with real issues not having access to addressing the issues is very saddening. There’s an incredible bittersweet beauty in the images – pathos.”
Though the show has been in the planning for months, it comes following negative press about San Francisco and the Tenderloin, including Elon Musk’s X headquarters leaving and Florida Gov. Ron Desantis taking a highly publicized tour of the area.
It also overlaps with homeless encampment sweeps across the Bay Area following an executive order by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Though Hugo recognizes some of the politicking to a degree, such criticisms didn’t deter him 10 years ago, nor do they deter him now.
“I am not ‘au fait’ with regional U.S. politics, so I can’t speak with any authority on that issue. I think the fact that the work was made on an almost daily basis over a few months speaks of my commitment.”
He says he hopes some of the people photographed find their way to the gallery to see what they worked on years ago. He considers the possibility of a follow-up project, but for now, he’s grateful to see the fulfillment of a project that’s been a decade in the making.
Pieter Hugo’s “Californian Wildflowers” runs Sept. 12 through Nov. 9 at the Jonathan Carver Moore gallery, 966 Market St., San Francisco. For viewing hours and more information, visit jonthancarvermoore.com.
Charles Lewis III is a San Francisco-born journalist and performing artist. He has written for the San Francisco Chronicle, KQED and San Francisco Examiner. Dodgy evidence of this can be found at The Thinking Man’s Idiot.wordpress.com.
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