Great photos. Thanks for posting this.
I was living in the heart of the S.F. Tenderloin in the early 80's and working full time as a poor painter. Many of those faces were my neighbors. People would climb up the fire escape and knock on my window at 3AM to get to their heroin dealer on the floor above me. How could you say no? Slept w/ a gun next to the alarm clock.
At the time, it felt edgy and exciting. Now my memories are of stupid decisions, unnecessary danger, and suffering. Never thought to photograph anyone. People would not have been fond of having a camera pointed at them, and it wouldn't have felt right. I made some strong paintings of what went on outside my 3rd floor bay windows, but later destroyed them. Everyone deserves their privacy, even if they basically live on the streets.
