George and Donna met on a blind date in Brooklyn more than 30 years ago, they have been together ever since, except for the times when Donna struggles with her medication and vanishes for awhile, until George can find her and bring her home. Donna is a former street person, she knows how to live anywhere and how to take care of herself. She says she stopped being a street person when she couldn’t run any longer and it has been a long time since she has run away, although her very powerful medications can still cause her great discomfort and confusion.
Their love is a strikingly beautiful thing, filled with joy and heartache. I have been photographing these two for several years, some of the photographs reach so deeply into my heart that it aches just to look at them. They are inseparable, they never stop supporting and encouraging one another, through the most difficult and painful challenges of life. She is a prolific artist, he is a brilliant photographer, a world famous one, pushed out of the way by the 911 tragedy and the digital revolution. Theirs is a creative connection, a testament to the power of loyalty and encouragement. Nothing stops or discourages or deters them, they are creative every day of their lives, in every way they can be.
I asked George where he took Donna on that first blind date, he says he took her to the Botanical Gardens in Brooklyn, he doesn’t remember if he spent any money or not, I asked him if he was cheap. He says he doesn’t know.
Today I was helping George with his Kickstarter Project, we are very close to launching it. Donna came with him, and while I was videotaping the room and some of his photos, Donna sat across from George and worked on some of her sketches, she is putting them into a book. These two live in their own world, they always completely understand one another, even if the rest of the world cannot always understand them.
The two of them were sitting in front of a window, suddenly I saw Donna reach out her hand to touch George, to feel his forehead. It was such a beautiful moment it took my breath away for a bit, but I had my camera in my hand and moved quickly enough to capture this moment. It said so much about what love really means, what it really is. It is not about age, not about beauty, not about money or style. It is pure, it transcends life, it is the purest expression of the soul. There, I saw it in that window of the Round House Cafe, George and Donna, a love so pure it can be unbearable to see.
– We just finished editing a brief video that will be included in George’s Kickstarter Project “The We Were.” The project is going live Thursday morning around ll a.m., but I want to give the people who read my blog a sneak preview. You can see it here.
I hope you will consider supporting George’s Kickstarter project tomorrow, he is seeking $8,200 or more to publish some of his greatest photographic works, these show New York City in the days before 911, “The Way We Were.” Look for it in the morning, I’ll write about it on the blog of course.