'Souls Of San Francisco' Looks Into The Eyes Of The City's Characters (PHOTOS)

If eyes are a window into one's soul, then Garry Bowden's main goal is to expose the soul of San Francisco.

For more than a year, the SF-based artist has been photographing portraits of the myriad characters he meets throughout town. He plans to turn the striking results into a book this coming winter.

"This project gives me an excuse to stop and meet all the interesting people in this city," he told The Huffington Post. "There's nowhere in the world like the Bay Area, so I'm grateful I get to learn about its culture straight from the people who create it."

Bowden captures young and old, straight and gay, brown and white and every color in between, detailing the poignant few moments he spends with each subject. Through their faces, he tells the stories of a street worker trying to make enough money to cover the debts of her drug-addict mother, an AIDS activist, a bright-eyed transplant ready to tackle her California dream, a homeless man determined not to make his situation a "shituation."

"Despite how we appear to be different on the outside, we all experience the same things in our inner world," Bowden said. "Life is made infinitely easier if we see each other as friends exploring the mystery of life together."

A few pieces from "Souls of San Francisco" are currently on display at D-Structure in the Lower Haight, and highlights from the collection can be viewed on the official website. Take a look at some of Bowden's favorite images below, and if you like what you see, you can contribute to his Kickstarter campaign here.

• North Beach

  Yahweh

• Cole Valley

  "So what do you think happens after you die?" "I think you're energy floating about." "What caused you to believe that?" "My mother passed recently and I've had some dreams that were too real to be just dreams."

• Nob Hill

  Meet Zuzu.

• The Mission

  While eating by the front of a restaurant in the window space, this woman and I made eye contact and she turned to come into the restaurant. She said she was really hungry and asked if she could sit down with me. As she wolfed down the food that was left of the meal she asked me, ?Are you looking for a good time?? I told her no thanks and started asking her about her life. She said she had just moved down here a few months ago from Washington to work the streets to clear a debt her mother had accumulated because she was a heroin addict. That she was just holed up in some space her pimp had for her. The whole thing was sad and weighed heavy on my heart. The darker parts of life can be overwhelming and uncomfortable but I feel sometimes it?s important just to acknowledge the bleak realities some people live in and to have compassion. To have gratitude for the things you are blessed with and focus on what?s really important to you.

• Chinatown

  He didn't speak English but I managed to get him to pose for the picture. I love how the masculine and feminine are evenly split down the center of his face.

• Haight Ashbury

  "I just moved here from Maui to live the California dream we've all heard of."

• The Mission

  "I've lived here 80 years. I know this city." "What's changed the most since you've been here?" "There used to be a middle class, that solid foundation that held everything up. There weren't all these tech companies. Nowadays I see people staring at their screens all the time. I still don't know what they're doing on those things. But I do know what they're not doing, they're not talking to each other."

• Alamo Square

  "I do heroic tarot readings." "Why are the called heroic tarot readings?" "I help people interpret energetic forces in their lives with a very special deck of X-Men tarot cards."

• The Tenderloin

  "How are you today?" "I'm blessed, we're doing better than most." "What's your secret?" "We're homeless but not helpless, we don't let a situation turn into a shituation."

• The Castro

  "I work with the Shanti Project. We're dedicated to helping people with HIV and other terminal illnesses cope with their situation." "How did you get involved with them?" "Well...let's see. I'm 70 now, I've been living with HIV for 30 years." "You're 70!?! No way. You look amazing." "Well...it's hard to get out of bed everyday but I work with a lot of young people and they keep me young." "And I know you inspire them, thank you for what you do."

• Lower Haight

  "How come you're not wearing a shirt?" "I never wear shirts, they're too constricting." "Not even to work?" "This is my work, I do cuddle therapy." "Really?" "Yep, I help people get the love and affection they think they don't have access to."

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/30/souls-of-san-francisco_n_2386370.html

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