THE ROOTLESS
DION CHRISTENSEN | AGE 25
Dion Christiansen is from Glostrup. He grew up with a sick mother and lived mainly with a foster family. Dion’s mother died when he was 11 years old. After that, he had it difficult in school, but when he, as a 17-year-old, was accepted to the film and theatre school Holberg, his life changed – he began to feel success.
At the age of 19, Dion went travelling, but when he returned he had a hard time settling down again. He did not have a place to live and began living on the street. He was later hospitalised due to a drug-induced psychosis and spent the next couple of years recovering.
Dion then rented a room, but was thrown out and has lived on the streets these last years.
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The Rootless
‘The Rootless’ is a project about homeless people in Denmark, which is intended to further understanding of the situation of the homeless by focusing on their lives and living conditions through a photo exhibition and the nationwide publishing of a book.
‘The Rootless’ are a group of 30 people who has somehow been pushed out of society either by or without conscious choice and who need more help than that which is provided by the efforts of our society. A large part of the problem is the fact that we do not look the people we are supposed to help in the eye.
Most of us would rather not face the reality we are confronted by through these people. Most of us fail to grasp the relations that take place in the streets and that makes it challenging for us to understand the homeless rather than turning our backs on them. This project tries to diminish the distance between us and homeless people by giving them facial features and telling their stories.
‘The Rootless’ was exhibited in 2010 as an outdoor exhibition in 6 larger cities in Denmark and had its Inaugural exhibition at the art festival Lys over Lolland (Light Over Lolland) same year.
