Portrait of US is an evolving audiovisual archive of intimate stories told by ordinary people as the
Nomadic Photo Ark weaves its way across the United States.
Since 2021, photographer Monica Frisell and audio recorder/editor Adam Scher (self-described “collectors of faces and stories”) have been zigzagging across the country in The Ark, amassing an audiovisual archive which they call Portrait Of US. The stories are garnered from people based in both rural and urban communities, each one a snapshot of one ordinary person but which when threaded together, produce a mosaic of community life and what binds us together, collectively, as Americans.
Just some of the topics that have been entrusted to and captured by Frisell and Scher for their now 250-and-counting portrait portfolio include: grappling with health problems or issues of sexual or cultural identity and body image; dealing with grief or the pressures of starting a business or becoming a parent; handling the impact of addiction, sobriety, faith or politics; what binds a person historically to a place; and just recalling important personal memories, such as a first kiss…
As Frisell explains, "Many folks seem to derive relief from the experience - particularly after the isolation of the Pandemic - the project provides a moment for people to feel seen and heard, albeit by two seeming strangers."
The Ark spent 4 weeks in Green Mountain Falls in the Ute Pass area of Colorado. Given a residency and fellowship by Green Box Arts, they were able to photograph and interview close to 50 new and long time residents of the town. These images and stories were captured in the fall of 2022.
The Ark was invited by the Monroe community college in Rochester, NY and spent one week gathering stories and portraits from students, faculty and alumni. These images and stories were gathered in the fall of 2021.
The Ark was invited by The Slavic Village Development organization to work with the neighborhood of Slavic Village in Cleveland, OH. They also were awarded support by The Cleveland Print Room. These images and stories were gathered in the summer of 2022.
North Hero, VT is a small town in the Champlain Islands in NW Vermont. The Ark spent five weeks gathering stories and portraits of the area in the fall of 2021.
The Ark was awarded a residency with the ON::View Residency program through Arts Southeast and Sulfur Studios. These images an portraits were made throughout the spring of 2022.
This is a collection of some of the first portraits and stories collected for the Portrait of US project. They made these while living in an RV Park in Birch Bay, WA during the summer of 2021.
We are always looking for new places to document - if you want to bring this project to your community - please fill out the form and be in touch!
Follow along on instagram @a.portraitofus
