Life of a Homeless Artist

I met David a year ago at  on St. Armands circle when the store hosted its bi-annual art sale to showcase the art of Sarasota’s homeless. With steel drum music wafting out to the street, the store quickly filled with people eager to see the newest paintings created by a small group of homeless artists. 

In the center of the store was David surrounded by his intricate wire sculptures.  A giraffe stood five feet tall, a horse reared back on its hind legs and an eagle archly fought off a coiled viper.  The eagle’s wing span was wider than my arms could spread and I stood in awe looking at these majestic creations. 

Calmly answering a barrage of questions, David explained that all of his sculptures are made from coat hangers which he either finds or people donate to him.  As he spoke he bent wire into bracelets and molded them on to individual wrists. People were fascinated by this soft-spoken gentle man and his work sold well that night.

As we packed up to go at the end of the evening, I asked David where he was going to put his sculptures. He told me he was worried because he did not have a safe place to keep them and instantly I offered to take them back to my gallery in the Village of the Arts. He happily accepted and so began my relationship with David.

It is hard being on the streets.  No cell phone, no regular meals, no viable means to support yourself and no place to safely sleep. Things get stolen in an instant.

Not long ago David stepped inside of a building to say hello to a friend and five minutes later he emerged to find not only his bike gone, but also a new horse sculpture he had just created. The lock was busted and his only pair of pliers that he creates his work were tied on to that bike.  At that moment, David’s usual optimism sunk to the depths. 

Check back next week for more of David's story and how he is lives as a homeless artist. 

This is the first part in a series about a homeless SRQ artist named David.