Interlaken, Switzerland

Street Corner Shrines

In Florence, Italy there are many street corners, nooks, and ally ways that are adorned with shrines. These shrines are of many shapes and sizes, some are even located very high up on the sides of buildings. Typically these worship spots contain images of the crucifixation, the virgin and child, or Jesus among his disciples. Glass covers the image as a means of protection, and there is usually a spot to mount and light a candle, for a prayer. I found these sites meant for adoration to be very interesting, and yet they are typically overlooked. Old and worn, most of the images are fading away. The occasional newspaper stand situates itself in front one, and passer bys take almost no notice of these street corner shrines. They seem to transcend time; they still exist even when so many less take notice. These corner worship spots harken back to a different time when people used to worship in public, just walking down the street. By taking the time to look and photograph them, I able draw attention to these little visual gifts that people, long ago, embraced.