Faces of Recovery: Nat and Matthew

It’s been a while, but here are more stories and portraits from Recovery Cafe.

Nat Duran turned up early in the morning at Recovery Cafe to talk to me today. She said the simplest thing to me to explain that she feels well now, and how she can do things she never could do before “I say hi to people when I meet them.“, she said.

Matthew volunteered to sit and talk to me when he heard that someone else scheduled today couldn’t make it. He insisted he was boring and had no story to tell. And then told me in the same breath that he volunteers to do all the prep chopping and cleaning for a meal for about 30 folks, twice every week at Recovery Cafe.

To make these portraits, I focus on the stories I’m told, trusting that the person before me will paint a portrait in words that my hand translates on to paper. This is when all that study at life drawing and urban sketching practice drawing people really helps. I’m just doing one thing: listening and recording stories. The rest takes care of itself.

Find every story recorded so far here. Or read more about the cafe, it’s members and programs here.