Diana found her dad living rough in 2012 and spent the following years trying to reach him through the lens – here he is in August 2014 (Picture: Diana Kim)
Diana Kim, 30, first learnt about photography through her father, who at one time owned a photography studio on the island of Maui where she grew up.
But when her parents split up, she says her dad became ‘absent’. She lost touch with him as she spent years living with in different places, with friends, relatives, occasionally in cars – ‘roughing it’ she says.
In 2003, now a photography student, Diana began a long-term photo project about the homeless people living around her.
Diana Kim, 30, first learnt about photography through her father, who at one time owned a photography studio on the island of Maui where she grew up.
But when her parents split up, she says her dad became ‘absent’. She lost touch with him as she spent years living with in different places, with friends, relatives, occasionally in cars – ‘roughing it’ she says.
In 2003, now a photography student, Diana began a long-term photo project about the homeless people living around her.
Diana with her dad in 1988 (Picture: Diana Kim)
All she knew at the time about her dad was the little her grandmother could tell her – that his mental health had deteriorated and no one knew where he was living.
Ten years later, Diana was in Honolulu, continuing to document Hawaii’s forgotten homeless, when she made the heartbreaking discovery her dad was among them. She told NBC News the moment of realisation was ‘devastating’.
All she knew at the time about her dad was the little her grandmother could tell her – that his mental health had deteriorated and no one knew where he was living.
Ten years later, Diana was in Honolulu, continuing to document Hawaii’s forgotten homeless, when she made the heartbreaking discovery her dad was among them. She told NBC News the moment of realisation was ‘devastating’.
Diana’s dad was often unresponsive and she wouldn’t be able to find him for days (Picture: Diana Kim)
‘A woman came by and told me to “not bother,” because he stood there all day. I wanted to scream at her for not caring, for being so cruel, and not considering that he was my father,’ she recalls.
‘But then I realized that anger wouldn’t do anything to change the circumstances we were in – so I turned towards her and said, “I have to try.'”
‘A woman came by and told me to “not bother,” because he stood there all day. I wanted to scream at her for not caring, for being so cruel, and not considering that he was my father,’ she recalls.
‘But then I realized that anger wouldn’t do anything to change the circumstances we were in – so I turned towards her and said, “I have to try.'”
Diana’s dad in August 2013 (Picture: Diana Kim)
Over the next few years, Diana attempted to reconnect with her dad, and, in many ways, to ‘fix’ him (he suffers with severe schizophrenia), by turning her lens on him.
‘Photographing my own father actually began as a mechanism of protecting myself at first. I would raise my camera phone in front of me, almost as if that barrier would help keep me together,’ she says, adding ‘My own flesh and blood, but still such a stranger to me…’
It wasn’t until her dad suffered a heart-attack in October 2014, that he agreed to let her help him. Today, he’s doing well and is currently looking for a part-time job.
Over the next few years, Diana attempted to reconnect with her dad, and, in many ways, to ‘fix’ him (he suffers with severe schizophrenia), by turning her lens on him.
‘Photographing my own father actually began as a mechanism of protecting myself at first. I would raise my camera phone in front of me, almost as if that barrier would help keep me together,’ she says, adding ‘My own flesh and blood, but still such a stranger to me…’
It wasn’t until her dad suffered a heart-attack in October 2014, that he agreed to let her help him. Today, he’s doing well and is currently looking for a part-time job.
After going back on treatment, her dad’s health is now ‘significantly better’ (Picture: Diana Kim)
Diana recently raised funds on Kickstarter to create a photobook of her journey with her father, called The Homeless Paradise. She also wants to use some of the money to distribute CARE Medical History Bracelets to the homeless who want them, enabling them to carry their ID and important medical documents digitally and securely.
‘My goal, long before my father ever became homeless, was to humanize those who lived on the streets,’ she says. ‘They each have a story, and I hope that by sharing my own story, it helps to give new perspective.’
Diana recently raised funds on Kickstarter to create a photobook of her journey with her father, called The Homeless Paradise. She also wants to use some of the money to distribute CARE Medical History Bracelets to the homeless who want them, enabling them to carry their ID and important medical documents digitally and securely.
‘My goal, long before my father ever became homeless, was to humanize those who lived on the streets,’ she says. ‘They each have a story, and I hope that by sharing my own story, it helps to give new perspective.’
Dad and daughter pictured on July 17, 2015 (Picture: Diana Kim)
‘So long as we are alive in this world, every day is an opportunity to take hold of that ‘second chance.’ There is no failure unless you give up, and he never gave up. And I haven’t given up on him.’
‘So long as we are alive in this world, every day is an opportunity to take hold of that ‘second chance.’ There is no failure unless you give up, and he never gave up. And I haven’t given up on him.’
Metro
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