Working Life

Through a photo, Thomas Brooks distilled intricacies of Marshall Saperstein's working life.

Both Brooks and Saperstein attended the ILR opening Tuesday of "unseenamerica New York State:  Pictures of Working Lives Taken by Working Hands" to see the portrait and 50 other banner-sized photos taken by photographers from across the state.

"Who He Is" shows Saperstein in his Syracuse store, European Auto Parts, where he’s spent every workday since the 1960s.

In the background, dozens of British car pieces cover a wall.

Brooks is a letter carrier who has delivered Saperstein's mail for many years.

He snapped the impromptu photo as part of an "unseenamerica" photo workshop several years ago.

Thousands of people have learned about Saperstein and his work as the portrait travels the state in the "unseenamerica" exhibit.

The project is sponsored by the Workforce Development Institute, based in Albany, and the Bread and Roses Cultural Project, based in New York City and part of 1199 SEIU, a union which represents healthcare workers, janitors and others.

Exhibit photos were taken by bus drivers, teacher aides, home healthcare workers, bakers and others through "unseenamerica" photo workshops which culminated in photo shows across New York state.  

At the ILR opening, Harry Katz, Kenneth F. Kahn Dean and Jack Sheinkman Professor, said "Workers have a unique insight into work and the organizations they work with."

Photo settings include schools, a cow barn, a hospital, a cemetery, residential neighborhoods, an abandoned factory, kitchens, a bathtub.

All help tell the stories of working people.

At Tuesday's opening, Ed Murphy, executive director of the workforce Development Institute, said the photos underscore the "importance of remembering where we come from and giving voice to people who often don’t have a voice."

That's especially important during the current economic crisis, he said.

"These are not numbers, these are people," he said. "We hope shows like this will give people the opportunity to hear the workers … people will begin to see the dignity of workers."

During the past 10 years, workers from around the nation have participated in "unseenamerica" photo classes and exhibits, said Esther Cohen, executive director of the Bread & Roses Cultural Project.

The result, she said Tuesday, has been profound photos which invite people "to see workers from the inside."

The exhibit runs through July 18 at ILR.

Free to the public and open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, the exhibit is located in the second-floor lobbies of Ives Hall and the ILR Conference Center.