Photojournalist David González, 67, has an oil painting of St. Martin de Porres, the patron saint of social justice, hanging on his wall which he purchased in Lima, Peru, while covering a fire that killed over 300 people. In the depiction, a small ray of light from a narrow window shines on the saint, who stands on a dusty floor with a crucifix in his hand and animals at his feet, including a mouse.
González’s mother was the one who first introduced him to the saint, whose prayer card he carried with him in his wallet earlier in his career while working overseas. “It was one of those early devotions your mother exposes you to, one of those saints that links you to your mother’s faith and tradition,” he said. The story of this saint was one González could relate to: “He has mice at his feet and we had mice in our apartment. I guess he knows what’s up.”
Expressions of everyday religion like the devotion of González’s mother to St. Martin de Porres inform the Urban Devotions exhibit. The photos show a kind of faith that is inseparable from the lives of real people, a kind that is not confined to the walls of a sacred place but moves people to action in their communities.
One photo featured in the exhibit, “Fr. John Grange,” depicts a fiery Irish-American priest who was not afraid to turn his faith into action, even if it upset some people. Grange was González’s dear friend, and he says that the priest’s motto was, “Get shit done and explain and apologize later.”
Grange, who grew up in Mott Haven back when it was an Irish enclave, is a representative of the post-Vatican II generation of Irish street priests and nuns who rolled up their sleeves and got to work.
“They were practical to the extent that they realized [the people in the community] needed somebody on their side to confront a variety of issues, some of which were policy issues and issues of structural inequality,” said González. “They knew that you just can’t preach something abstract to [people]; it has to be real.”
Other photos in the exhibit show the bread line outside the window of the Catholic Worker in the Lower East Side and a mourning scene called “Waking Heidi” in Bedford Park. In both, religious iconography sits in the corners, representing the faith behind the actions taking place.
Many of the photos show scenes on the street. There’s a black and white frame with a depiction of “Moshiach,” or the Jewish Messiah, on the streets of Chinatown, an image of the sacred heart icon painted onto a brick wall in Highbridge, a closed-up storefront with the message “Jesús es el señor” in Morrisania and a photo of a street church in Tremont titled “Salvation.”
Another photo shows a street mural of Jessica Guzman, a young girl who vanished and was found strangled under the fault of a scam artist who wreaked havoc on many kids under 10 years old. The event shook the Bronx but brought the community together to remember Guzman’s life. A mural was painted of Guzman in her first communion dress on Castle Hill Avenue, where she grew up.
“Faith and religious expression is just a part of everyday life in NYC,” said González.
While working on the “About NY” column of the New York Times, González wrote about a book titled “Mr. Ives’ Christmas” by Oscar Hijuelos and noticed the deeply religious themes it encapsulated. Hijuelos thinks of religion in terms of music — as “a wild jam session going on all around you” — an analogy that hit home with González since he comes from a family of musicians.
González hears the melody and is able to document it because he knows how to listen and what to listen for. The grassroots philosophy that underlies his work makes him attuned to the small details of faith in the city that others might overlook.
The Urban Devotions exhibit helps viewers understand faith in the city in a new way by paying attention to the expressions of faith hidden in plain sight all around them. There were many people who contributed to the production and organization of González’s first solo show.
“The process of staging this exhibition was really done by David [González] and his colleagues at the Seis del Sur photo collective,” said David Gibson, director of Fordham’s Center on Religion and Culture (CRC). “Vincent Stracquadanio who manages the galleries at Fordham also did the bulk of the installation organizing and other promotions. Julie Gaffney at the Center for Community Engaged Learning was also instrumental in providing support.”
Eileen Markey, writer in residence for the CRC and an assistant professor of journalism at Lehman College of the City University of New York, also played a big role in connecting Fordham with González to bring his works to Lincoln Center.
The exhibit is on display at the Lipani Gallery until Feb. 17.
