BEDFORD-STUYVESANT — After Yael Magnes moved from Israel to Brooklyn in 2005, she was looking to rekindle a sense of community.
Following a brief stint in Red Hook and a short move to Washington, D.C., Magnes and her family finally settled in Bedford-Stuyvesant, where she started a daily meet-and-greet routine with her neighbors.
“Walking back and forth while taking my daughter to daycare, I would see the same faces and say hello every day,” Magnes, 40, said.
“I realized everybody wants to belong and feel like part of a place. The more people know each other, we all feel like we’re connected, we can be a true community and achieve more together.”
The interactions inspired her to document fellow residents in a series of photographs.
“On the Way Home,” an art project started by Magnes in June, provides snapshots of the Bed-Stuy neighbors she and others encounter during their travels in the area.
“People are always talking about how this place is changing rapidly. We have to show the face of what it is right now and capture parts of history,” she said.
Magnes said the subjects in her photos are excited to be part of the project because "everybody needs community." Photo credit: On the Way Home
Magnes stops when she sees familiar faces during her neighborhood walks to strike up a conversation, asking for a photo and their name, she said.
“Now the same people you see become people you know,” she said. “The relationship deepens.”
From the bodega owner down the block to the local babysitter, Magnes said she has met more than 30 new acquaintances during the course of the project.
She’s also inviting residents throughout Bed-Stuy to participate in taking photos and interacting with those they see “on their way home.”
The project will culminate with a slideshow projected on the wall of the Clifton Place Community Garden and Park on Sept. 25 and 26, from 6:30 to 9 p.m.
Taking photos of neighbors she sees on a daily basis opens up the lines for conversation and connection, Magnes said. Photo credit: On the Way Home
Magnes hopes the two-day event, complete with food and music, will give people the opportunity to mingle, she said. She recently launched an online campaign to raise funds for the occasion.
Following the presentation, she said she will reach out to the MTA in an effort to showcase the slideshow in Bed-Stuy’s subway stations.
“The issue of ‘where do I belong?’ and ‘where is home?’ is something that is always in people’s minds,” Magnes said.
“The minute I started doing this project, it wasn’t about me looking for community anymore, it became about the people I was meeting and what it meant for them.”
To submit your own photos or learn more about “On the Way Home,” email YMagnes@gmail.com.
