Artist Spotlight - A Homeless Man with Professional Skills

Justin Brosey - 26 years old | Florida

Every week we will be featuring impressive feats of art from people around the world, and Justin Brosey from Florida certainly fits the bill. 

Justin has a long-held passion for photography, but recently he had the misfortune of becoming homeless. As a homeless person, you might not expect him to have professional-level skills, and yet Justin displays truly brilliant photographic abilities.

My mission is to paint some light on fungi & other little things in nature through photography & art,

in hopes that others may come to realize that all big things are made of little things,

and being small doesn't mean being insignificant.

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Since being laid off and losing his job recently due to a series of unfortunate events, Justin, his girlfriend, and his seven year-old daughter have been living in the woods -- feeding off the beauty of nature surrounding them. 

 Cuban tree frog (Osteopilus septentrionalis) - Photo by Justin Brosey - Click to see full size

Every day he walks miles to the local library to access the internet, works on his website, and looks for much-needed help. 

I added some neat services to my website which have made us a few dollars to survive on. We survive on very little, sometimes we don't have money for many days at a time, but normally we spend a few dollars a day. 

Camping in the Floridian forests

Justin wasn't always homeless; he had a house, a job, and savings for financial stability. But when the job was gone, the home soon followed, and he migrated his family into the hot mosquito-ridden forest with the last of their belongings. Since then, they've struggled to find work and get back onto their feet.

Our dreams were to travel, to be free from the 9-5 job, and to actually give our daughter a life of expression, exploration and true freedom. So we saved up money and bought a small camper to pull behind our vehicle.

With the first step complete, step #2 was to save enough money to jump start the beginning of our adventure. That's when things started to go wrong, the job I was working suddenly laid me off, and at the worst possible time (just after spending all our savings on the camper). Not long after losing the work, I was being evicted from my home.

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Justin's Photography

Let's take a look at a few photos that I've selected from his recent portfolio, with more to follow in the coming weeks.

Click on the images to view them in full size! 

Morning Dew

At face value, this photo is interesting and expertly captured; but what is it exactly? I asked Justin to explain what we're looking at. Think small.

The water drops are a very very close macro shot of morning dew sitting on a species Frog Moss which was living on a tree.

Just to be clear, 'frog moss' is a type of moss, not a type of frog! He used a "diffused flash and a 100mm macro lens at maximum magnification" to get the shot.

 

Pyramid of Marbles

Justin had an interesting explanation for how he produced this image.

A 20-second exposure of marbles, which I had set on fire, and light painted with a flashlight for a special lighting effect. I took that shot in my home before I became homeless.

 

All Glory to the Hypnotoad..

Close up of earlier shot. 

The frog is a Cuban treefrog (Osteopilus septentrionalis) which is invasive to Florida where it was found, but is still a very beautiful animal.

 

It was deep inside some thick grass and plants, I was laying on the ground to get the shot, and she was being very patient.

My entire inspiration comes from nowhere and everywhere, the universe, nature, my experience, and meditation. I do not have a set style, a set technique, or a set anything, I flow with whatever I see and feel.

 

I draw a lot of inspiration from the little overlooked things I find in the wild. I keep a very open-minded approach to photography and art, and never let any set-in-stone rules stop me from doing what I want.

I have been doing photography for 8ish years, and it started as an intense interest in mycology, and I even discovered a new species of mushroom once or twice thanks to my photography and reporting my finds on Mushroom Observer.

 

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I have experience painting, in pest control, in web design, in arborist work, but I want to make my living doing what I love and that is anything creative.

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Life Without a Home

I'm already homeless and at the lowest point a human can go while still in good health, so why not push for a life worth living? Why not take the risks to be who I want? Being homeless has been a blessing and a curse, but I thank the universe every day for supplying me a means to survive and a healthy family, truly love is what keeps us held together.

Justin's 7-year-old daughter, Jasmine

 

See more of Justin Brosey's work at his website, and follow him on Twitter: @RelicPhotograph and @SymbioPhoto!

 

If you'd like to help Justin and his family, visit his donation page and consider giving a few bucks.

 

What do you think of Justin Brosey and his photography? Leave a comment below, and let us know if you'd like to be profiled for an Artist Spotlight in a future blog post.