Beautiful Stranger – 2014

Beautiful Stranger was an illustration and short interview project comprised of complete strangers. Its aim is to communicate a bit of what makes each person unique and connect people through on and offline interactions.

This project started after a conversation around the feeling of simultaneous connection and disconnection inherent to online interactions. Having spent a chunk of time traveling over the past few years and relying on technology to maintain friendships, this became very real.

The answer (for me at least) was also found through traveling. Being a stranger in a new place forces you to make an effort to talk to people. Which is actually this wonderful opportunity not just to get to know new people, but to leave old ways of being behind. Being fairly introverted myself this was at times a challenging experience, but I enjoyed it.

After coming back to Vancouver I thought this project could be my small way of combating disconnection. By reaching out to complete strangers and taking the time to get to know them, these sometimes anonymous spaces might feel less so. Maybe not just for me but for other people as well.

“My contribution to the world is my ability to draw. I will draw as much as I can for as many people as I can for as long as I can.” – Keith Haring