Working Life

This woman runs her own small business out of this tiny space at the front of the building where she lives. She buys large pieces of coal from her supplier and cuts them down into one kilogram bags of a more manageable size. Her customers are mostly street food stall owners who use portable coal burning stoves and grills.

At the end of each day she’ll close up her shop and walk down a long, narrow laneway that leads to the back of the building where she lives. Other than her dog staying by her side the whole time, there’s not much more we know about who she is or the life she lives. This one photograph is all we have.

Unfortunately, many Armenians still smoke way too many cigarettes in a day, and, unfortunately, even though this is a very nice man, he’s not helping any.

Early every morning this man buys fresh greens at the wholesale market to then sell throughout the day. He sets up shop wherever foot traffic is steady, and he’ll work all day until everything is sold. His produce table is made of plastic bags and his chair is nothing more than a fine sense of balance.

Age has not worn him down or changed him one bit, except for having made him a realist. He no longer dreams of opportunities for a better life, but simply of ways to live his best life. Maybe this is all that changes when we get older, or all that really needs to. ― Become a realist and keep your balance.

Dhobi Ghat in Mumbai is the world’s largest outdoor laundry facility where the Dhobi cast of men and women wash clothes for many of the businesses in the city. This photograph was taken at the end of a long, hard workday. It is often the case that entire families work here at Dhobi Ghat, and for many, it is also where they live.

This man works at the fish market attached to the Arica docks. He'll fillet the daily catch for you right out of the water and prepare a simple ceviche to tie you over till dinner. His fish stall feels more like home than a place of business, and if you're interested, he'll walk you through the memories in every single photo that hangs on the walls around him. You will learn that family, fútbol and fish are three constants that have sustained him ever since he was a young boy and that continue to inspire and fulfill him to this day. You can hear it in his voice. These are the loves of his life.

These are not the same grey coveralls his great-grandfather used to wear when he opened this metalwork shop a hundred years ago, but it feels like them.