discrimiNATION - Sarah M.F. Smith, Parsons School of Design

Parsons School of Design
BFA program

Ishmel Malendez
color photograph, 20" x 16"

Magnetta Simone
color photograph, 20" x 16"

Artist Statement

The four images that I submitted to Inliquid.com are portraits from my current project, which entails photographing the working class, specifically those in the service industry.

Many people in our society define who you are by what you do for a living. I find this to be discrimination that is simply accepted, and certainly never talked about. The women and men who work in blue-collar jobs are continually uncelebrated. But I believe that it is in the working class that we find important stories, histories, and ultimately, the substance of our world.

The work focuses on the unpopular idea of working up a sweat. To be in the service industry is not glamorous. In this time of transition from a postindustrial to a technological society, importance is placed on the jobs that are shaping our new world.

But there is still the need for the human hand, and the service industry has not disappeared. The class structure of our society places the service industry at the bottom; the power lies with the upper class, which enjoys many privileges at the expense of the working class.

The subjects of my portraits wear their working uniform to help communicate what they do for a living. I photograph them in their own homes because I want to share who they are and provide personal information that helps the viewer see that there is more to them than their job or uniform.

These portraits will grow out of an exchange of communication and eye contact with the viewer by presenting them with a frontal view of each person. The intent is to open up an exchange of ideas and hopefully challenge society’s views of gender roles, cultural roles, and economic status.

I find it interesting and important to the project to challenge people’s subconscious expectations of my subjects. The conflict between what the viewer expects and what they see in the photograph is very different. Specifically, when looking at the portraits of maids, viewers begin to question their beliefs of how their homes "should" look.

I will be continuing this work by narrowing my focus on hotel maids. It is assumed that the majority of maids are women, and that they are maintaining the traditional role of the housewife and cleaning their own homes. But they also go to work and clean again, reinforcing the domestic role of women. I am interested in the history and effects of this dynamic.

Luke Carter
color photograph, 20" x 16"

Josephina Cerdona
color photograph, 20" x 16"