Down In The Hole

Down In The Hole is a place that enabled me to become something other than what I once was. An inviting and open world for a teenager interested in discovering his inner, secret self. For many, San Francisco represents a symbol of absolute freedom. A haven or refuge from the drudgery of normal-day life.

Living as a child in the suburbs of northern California laid the foundation for a lifelong affinity for San Francisco's open frontier. At first it became a form of rebellion, later growing into something much more serious. I began taking every opportunity to escape by bus and experience what I considered the opposite of my ordinary middle-class domesticity.

Twenty years later I still explore the city. It feels like a stage set in a film. Characters actively play their roles. I carouse in the same alleyways searching for human dramas and bittersweet ironies. The choices made are still driven by the desire to challenge my own fears, but now it is ultimate freedom. And by keeping a photographic diary of this landscape that spans fascination, desire and loss, I am home again -- forced to reconcile my own demons and defy the mundaneness of polite society.

Victor Cobo