Dani Fresh

I dig people who are as good on the inside as they are on the outside. I also tend to photograph them.

[danifresh]

We seldom talk about it these days. Just enough to acknowledge it but not so often that we are wading in the muck. . Image Descriptions (a diptych, Spiked Bush): . A vertical image of dried flowers, thistles prominently in the foreground, against a white wall in soft daylight. . A vertical portrait of Will, a white man with a beard and shaved head standing behind a rose bush with dead heads on it. There is a fence and the rails of a deck behind him. He is looking down in direct sunlight. . I have known for as long as I can remember that I did not want to have children and I’ve been thinking about my evolving ideas of legacy and chosen family. . WIP: Radical Abundance . @lifeatsixfeet @will.the.smith #lifeatsixfeet #childfreebychoice #familyarchives #nurturing #radicalabundance #chosenfamily https://www.instagram.com/p/CPmPwVvtwci/?utm_medium=tumblr

[danifresh]

Months prior, you helped me move into this space. At the end of the day, collapsed into these chairs with prosecco in our hands, we sat here and wept. . Image Descriptions (a diptych, Nurturing & Nurtured): . A vertical image of the shadow cast on the wall from the full moon in the middle of the night with defined lines from the window panes and a thriving monstera plant. The moonlight is cool toned on the white wall. . A vertical profile portrait of Veronica, a white femme with long, dark hair, holding a wine glass at night. She is seated in front of a window surrounded by small potted plants with the exaggerated shadow of the wine glass on the window frame. The light is a mixed moonlight, streetlight, and tungsten. . I have known for as long as I can remember that I did not want to have children and I've been thinking about my evolving ideas of legacy and chosen family. . WIP: Radical Abundance . @lifeatsixfeet @wildcardcoven @veronica.annerae #lifeatsixfeet #childfreebychoice #familyarchives #nurturing #radicalabundance #chosenfamily https://www.instagram.com/p/CPE2c5ztuf_/?utm_medium=tumblr

[danifresh]

I can feel him in the woods. . When Michael and I get quiet and I plan my steps in the packed snow of the trails. . He is not in the smell of the droplets of the rushing waterfall, the hemlock limbs that brush my coat, or the stippling of the sun surging ecstasy with the end of winter. . He is in the depth of my breath. . I meditate here with him. . Image Descriptions (a diptych, Father’s Figure): . A vertical image peering into my parents bedroom of the house I grew up in. The slight glow of light coming in through a window with blinds drawn can be seen behind the door. There is a nightstand with a lamp, alarm clock and telephone on it and a wastebasket beside it. There is floral art on the wall above my father’s side of the bed. . A vertical photo peering into the bedroom of the bungalow that Michael and I were staying at in the Poconos. There is a window with a curtain looped around the curtain rod, a mirror on the wall and a framed art museum poster, a desk with a typewriter. Michael is on the bed laughing at me and stretching in the sun beam while holding a blanket. There is a book on the bed in front of him. . I have known for as long as I can remember that I did not want to have children and I’ve been thinking about my evolving ideas of legacy. . WIP: Radical Abundance. . @lifeatsixfeet @bradleymic #lifeatsixfeet #childfreebychoice #familyarchives #legacy #radicalabundance https://www.instagram.com/p/CNA2xeNj5Z0/?igshid=w93phktjpyuq

[danifresh]

Image Description: A diptych. The reflection of a pale pink vintage nightgown hung on the back of a door in a long brass framed mirror. My hands holding a patterned pink, magenta, bronze, and orange silk scarf. Wood floor can be seen in the background. . I have known for as long as I can remember that I did not want to have children and I’ve been thinking about my evolving ideas of legacy and gently thumbing through artifacts. . WIP: Radical Abundance . @lifeatsixfeet #lifeatsixfeet #radicalabundance #childfreebychoice #familyarchives #legacy https://www.instagram.com/p/CLvJe7pD-b5/?igshid=1e1spqog4y3p7

[danifresh]

Image Description: A blue beaded necklace and  handwritten note arranged on blue textured paper and placed on a wood floor. The note has the letterhead “John Lucas” and reads “This blue bead necklace belonged to John D’s mother. Given to Cherrye by John J. Lucas -his father 1945” . I have known for as long as I can remember that I did not want to have children and I’ve been thinking about my evolving ideas of legacy and gently thumbing through artifacts. . WIP: Radical Abundance . @lifeatsixfeet #lifeatsixfeet #radicalabundance #childfreebychoice #familyarchives #legacy https://www.instagram.com/p/CLsiMJJjzrG/?igshid=mmmohuem0gdb

[danifresh]

Image Description: A blue beaded necklace and  handwritten note arranged on blue textured paper and placed on a wood floor. The note has the letterhead “John Lucas” and reads “This blue bead necklace belonged to John D’s mother. Given to Cherrye by John J. Lucas -his father 1945” . I have known for as long as I can remember that I did not want to have children and I’ve been thinking about my evolving ideas of legacy and gently thumbing through artifacts. . WIP: Radical Abundance . @lifeatsixfeet #lifeatsixfeet #radicalabundance #childfreebychoice #familyarchives #legacy https://www.instagram.com/p/CLsh-hOjRNb/?igshid=x3nkiyosuszj

[danifresh]

A laminated copy of my grandmother’s obituary given to me by a family member. Flowers from a previous home that I dried and preserved. . I have known for as long as I can remember that I did not want to have children and I’ve been thinking about my evolving ideas of legacy and gently thumbing through artifacts. . WIP: Radical Abundance . @lifeatsixfeet #lifeatsixfeet #radicalabundance #childfreebychoice #familyarchives #legacy https://www.instagram.com/p/CLhYwgaDHkb/?igshid=14oj79qv5z2io

[danifresh]

Traffic it was bumper-to-bumper with state workers trying to get the hell out of the city. The roads were already super slick. I think we were a beer or two in, skidding and sliding down the sidewalk to the Tav from the Pub. It was a perfect day. . First snow of the season with Ashlie. Harrisburg, PA. November, 2018. . . . @ashliesquid #radicalabundance #whatweatewhere #harrisburg #makeportraits https://www.instagram.com/p/CI3p_xVD4pv/?igshid=11bkufr8eunyl

[danifresh]

Today is a big day for me. It’s the first snow of the season and I’ve been really looking forward to watching snowflakes drift down past my windows and soften the city all over. . It’s not sticking—been too warm for that—but it’s quiet and delicate. Another one of many firsts this year in a place that is entirely my own in the middle of a city that I love and that is ours. . My tenderness leans wistful too. . Snow in Harrisburg makes me miss friends and neighbors when the city really becomes ours. We’re just used to hosting as a capital city: the politicians, the lobbyists, state workers, activists, journalists, folks searching for answers from their government. Don’t get me wrong, we are those people too, but this weather blanket changes us for a day or so and we are only neighbors. Shoveling walks and parking spaces and helping folks out, kids playing in the snow, bundling up together to walk to the Tav to play pool or sit upstairs at the Speakeasy in front of the fireplace to play cards, making photos, or figuring out who remembered to stock groceries so we can make chili. More paused traditions. . This year and this pandemic will eventually end though. And at least for a little while, we’ll experience post-pandemic firsts together with all the missed traditions and connections. . And I swear, if they don’t retire the phrase “unprecedented times” soon, I’m going to fucking scream. . Anyway, the snow this morning was beautiful, but you should know that I miss you. . . . #radicalabundance #whatweatewhere #danifresh #harrisburg #hburgmade https://www.instagram.com/p/CIyng56DI2b/?igshid=1g4j4idm8mjm5

[danifresh]

It was after dark and I had been sitting in the living room reading when I got up to pee—pee with the door open. It’s what you do when you live alone. Most of the time I don’t even turn on the light in the bathroom. I sat there and gazed at the antique door knob of the bathroom door warmed by the light drifting in from the living room. I washed my hands in the dark and leaned against the door frame staring back down the hall. . I think I’ve lived most of my life in a perpetual state of self-inflicted unrest and tension so when I finally started learning how to carve out time to relax in the last few years, I’ve realized how revolutionary it is to rest. It’s an unclenching of the jaw, a stretch, steady and deep breaths, feeling everything—all of my senses, elevation and peace. But it’s usually reserved for moments like when I’m hiking or at an airbnb in the woods or when I’ve had real downtime in Asbury or when I’ve been in Nicaragua or the Dominican Republic with Marilyn. It was always temporary and fleeting. . As I stared down the hall into the tungsten incandescence of the living room, I breathed deeply and felt it. . I am home and it is a profound relief. . #whatweatewhere #home https://www.instagram.com/p/CIHPl0iDhad/?igshid=9vrsfuo0m51u

[danifresh]

“THIS WALL IS A PAINTED CONVERSATION WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD BY ESPO . I’M FROM PHILADELPHIA BUT I HAVE FAMILY HERE” . Steve ESPO Powers mural on 3rd Street. Harrisburg, PA. October, 2020. . @steveespopowers @earlybirdvote @sprocketmuralworks #harrisburg #spotdog #mural https://www.instagram.com/p/CID6jpSDC3t/?igshid=1wocgkqn3kids

[danifresh]

It’s so wild to think that I was a senior when he was born. My youngest nephew, Anthony, is a senior this year. He is perfect and no one can tell me otherwise. Canal Fulton, OH. October, 2020. . @anthony.grossnickle #makeportraits #canalfulton #seniorportraits #northwesthighschool #ohio https://www.instagram.com/p/CHy1xJcDDPH/?igshid=kk38snsbn2nh

[danifresh]

Shannon and her bike out front of the house. A spontaneous, emotional, very distanced hang during a very strange spring. It’s fucking wild how relieved and happy I was to see you on this day. Pandemic conducive gestures of care and friendship. Harrisburg, PA. April, 2020. . . . @shannon_tooker #makeportraits #harrisburg #whatweatewhere #bikelife https://www.instagram.com/p/CHnqZ_8DjxK/?igshid=199kcwr4ha35a

[danifresh]

I’ve really tried to reflect on what kind of aunt I am to you but honestly, I don’t know. Sometimes I feel like I’m this figure that just floats in and out. I do love our relationship though. I love that you’re not afraid to be curious or call me out for bullshit, that we snapchat and you’re genuinely elated when I make images with you. . There’s this little, maybe selfish part of me that hopes my unconventional, weird life helps to show you that you are powerful and have agency over your own future. But the bigger part of me, the one that knows your confidence, curiosity, and gracious heart, suspects you don’t need my example to find your own path. . Either way, I am here for you now and the person that you will become. I’m sorry there’s a pandemic during your senior year. I love you very much. . Self portrait with my nephew, Anthony. Luna Lake. Clinton, OH. July 2020. . . . @anthony.grossnickle @lifeatsixfeet #selfportrait #lunalake #makeportraits #whatweatewhere #lifeatsixfeet #makemefeel #alwaysgo #childfreebychoice https://www.instagram.com/p/CHjiM8HjP_f/?igshid=xag0e6r5z9tb

[danifresh]

The BLM movement found support in red, rural PA. What will it mean for voting? Story by Laura Benshoff. Chambersburg, PA. September, 2020. . 1. Marvin and Linda Worthy have been fighting for racial justice for years in Chambersburg, PA. They've been encouraged to see the protest movement of the summer garner significant attention locally. . Rodney Shoop, a longtime Republican who plans to vote for Joe Biden, at his home in Chambersburg, PA. . Matthew D. Fogal, the District Attorney of Franklin County, has been ousted by the local GOP for his support of Black Lives Matter. . Signs supporting Joe Biden and Kamala Harris line the streets in Marvin and Linda Worthy’s neighborhood. . Lois and Donald Waters, who this year are being more visibly supportive of Democrats, at their home in Chambersburg, PA. . . . @whyy @keystonecrossroads #election2020 #chambersburg #pennsylvania #swingstate https://www.instagram.com/p/CHIltR5jYP0/?igshid=qn4pha4he3ck

[danifresh]

PA voters: Jamari Davis, 41, and his sister Amanda Davis-Buie. Portraits and outtakes. Harrisburg, PA. . From Philly to Erie, 12 Pennsylvania voters talk about their crucial swing state vote. Keystone Crossroads voter profile by Alanna Elder. . @witfnews @keystonecrossroads @whyy #pavoters #swingstate #election2020 #lebanon #harrisburg #pennsylvania https://www.instagram.com/p/CHG1ckNjsv0/?igshid=pnn3s5sea4ie

[danifresh]

PA voters: Brendan Bittle, 25. Portraits and outtakes. Chambersburg, PA. . From Philly to Erie, 12 Pennsylvania voters talk about their crucial swing state vote. Keystone Crossroads voter profile by Laura Benshoff. . @witfnews @keystonecrossroads @whyy #pavoters #swingstate #election2020 #chambersburg @lolbenshoff https://www.instagram.com/p/CHF9z5ZjVXq/?igshid=1jc1cw6vdn0xl