Oakland: Razing & Rising

Downtown Oakland’s skyline is undergoing a dramatic transition. These images were made and processed in a manner to illustrate this transformation. They also suggest, though, how the splendor of new structures often conceal human struggles that persist in the life of a revitalized city. Thousands of individuals and families will occupy these new apartments and condominiums, adding to the strength and vitality of Oakland. But beneath these edifices and in their shadows are growing numbers of the homeless and housing insecure. The absence of people in these pictures might remind us that development must be more than razing the old and building the new: it is building and strengthening the lives of everyone, particularly those who can only look up and hope.