Boston Facade 1987 oil on linen 28x42” Collection of Jim Aloisi and Paul Rehme
I noticed this contrast between magnificent architecture and human need in the Fenway.
I walked past the Tufts Dental School’s Forsythe Center between grad school at Mass Art and the little apartment I shared with Zoe Dodds Stitt, who married me in 1986. Across the Fenway I’d noticed a little structure made out of sticks and blankets, probably built by a homeless person, where he/she could sleep at night. The contrast was dramatic. Boston is such a beautiful place to me because I grew up in a small town. Architecture there was functional and, for the most part, nondescript. Boston was and is full of architectural beauty and wealth, yet being here doesn’t solve human problems, like poverty, mental illness, and homelessness. This was an attempt to say that. I posed for the photo on the Forsythe steps, and Zoe took the shot.
