Photographer Kate Simon is zooming in on local housing issues in new exhibit

STAUNTON — Photographer Kate Simon is zooming in on local housing issues.

Simon has worked in tandem with the Community Foundation of the Central Blue Ridge to create "This is Home," a photojournalism project about a wide range of housing concerns in the Blue Ridge region, the community foundation announced in a press release.

She will address her work on the project at Mary Baldwin University’s Hunt Gallery at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 19. "This is Home" will be on display in the on-campus gallery now until Oct. 10.

“It’s an incredible honor,” Simon said in the release. “I feel like educating young people about issues happening in our community, we should absolutely invest in that. Those are the people who are going to make the change for our whole future.”

Dan Layman, CEO of the Community Foundation, believes the photojournalism project aligns well with Mary Baldwin University’s core values.

“As one of the most diverse university campuses in America, Mary Baldwin is an ideal host for our exhibit, 'This is Home,'” Layman said in the release. “Housing insecurity will be a new consideration for some students and a very personal experience for others.

“We hope that the exhibit will be a catalyst for students across campus, faculty and staff to engage in conversations that will add to the depth of their relationships with one another and support the university's commitment to inclusivity.”

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Simon is one of several regional artists that will be featured in Hunt Gallery during the academic year.

“We hope that students in all different study areas see that the artistic eye is very important asset to communicate about issues in our community,” said Martha Saunders, director of The Hunt Gallery. “The portraits are beautiful, but they have content that affects us all, and reveals content we need to know about.”

Simon spent several semesters studying sociology at Mary Baldwin University. Seeing her photography work displayed on campus is special to her, she said in the release.

“It’s an incredible honor to have this work in particular hanging in Mary Baldwin,” Simon said. “I was a sociology major. These issues mean a lot to me, and to feel like I can make a difference in a school that educated me on these issues means a lot to me.”

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Simon hopes her talk brings awareness to issues and inspires individuals to see how they can make a difference.

“These are not just numbers we see in statistics about homelessness or food insecurity,” she said. “These are real people with real stories. I hope they (those who attend) feel hopeful. I don’t want them to feel desperate like there’s nothing they can do. I hope they walk away knowing they can make a difference on an individual basis.”

For the university, collaborating with local artists and photographers like Simon is another way to forge bonds with the community surrounding the campus.

“We’ve always wanted to connect with our community here in Staunton,” Saunders said. “This is a beautiful way to do that.”

This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Staunton exhibit: Photographer Kate Simon zooming in on housing issues