The Post-Katrina Portraits, written and narrated by hundreds, drawn by one, are an art and story documentary project begun in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and then Rita.

Defying “mandatory evacuations” declared by the State, the artist, Francesco di Santis, came and stayed to capture hundreds of the “Post-Katrina” stories from those who lived them. For thirteen months he carried on this creative endeavor born as close to the moment of an unprecedented disaster as one can bring a fine art medium involving a large public participation.

This multimedia collection of tragedy, witness and uncertainty ultimately comes to us as one of community. It celebrates the people who worked to create community, their pride, victories and aspirations, including those who came from afar in solidarity with the self-determination of its peoples. In this volume, the subjects of the portraits either wrote directly on the drawings of themselves or as a second resort, due to preference or inability, had excerpts of tape-recorded interviews written on them by a scribe. In both cases, those drawn had the burden or pleasure of introducing themselves, and unless annotated otherwise, each portrait is written on by by the person whose face appears on the page. Many embraced the act of telling their story as a form of psychological recovery. For many, telling their story proved to be extremely difficult due to the trauma that surfaced. Many to whom I appealed could not - or chose not to - bring themselves to do so. Many chose to recall despite the emotional hardship because they wanted the world to know. For others, the political motivation of what they perceived or recalled as the truth of the events inspired them. Others had a cultural or personal incentive to promote or make visible their heritage, identity and history. I have felt honored to play a part in facilitating this record.