Virtual gallery: Laurel Street

A few weeks ago I finished up a five-week photography class at the New Orleans Academy of Fine Arts, which culminated in a documentary project. I chose to document the character of Laurel Street and its transformation from one end to the other: in this case, from Audubon to the Lower Garden District.

Although I originally intended the documentary as a chance to jump outside my comfort zone—boldly photographing the men, women and children of Laurel Street as they went about their days—it quickly turned into a documentary of the inanimate artifacts we’ve marked it with. While the project could have benefited from a human touch, the simultaneous variability and similarity of buildings, fences, and objects is a worthwhile narrative in its own right. This series is a portrait of a street; but by extension, it is a portrait of the people who made it what it is.