SEATTLE — It was unlike an art exhibit one might expect to see in Seattle. There was no expensive champagne, no high-priced landscapes lining white walls.

This was raw. This was real.

Poulsbo-area artists joined Real Change News vendors and Seattle city officials on March 1 at Seattle City Hall for the opening of the Real Change Portrait Project, an exhibit displaying the faces and biographies of some of Real Change News’s homeless and low-income vendors.

“I just love [how] these portraits are hanging in City Hall to remind the thousands of people passing through here of the stories behind the homeless people out there,” Real Change founder Tim Harris said.

“Every person out there is their own person with their own beauty and these portraits show that. Artists have taken it upon themselves to create something beautiful upon our vendors.”

Real Change News, an award-winning street newspaper and advocacy project, was established in 1994. Real Change provides economic opportunity and a voice for low-income and homeless residents, while taking action for economic, social and racial justice.

The Real Change Portrait Project was born four years ago in a Poulsbo art studio. As Jon Williams, photo and art director for Real Change News, sat in Knowles Studio making monotypes with owner Leigh Knowles Metteer, they discussed the subject of faces through photographs of some of the vendors.

“It was serendipity,” Knowles Metteer said. “Jon was using the faces of some of the vendors as subjects for his printmaking. We began to think about this as a really cool thing to do and it was very fun to see that evolve.”

Knowles Metteer said portraiture was historically reserved for people of means, so this project is “sort of a statement about recognizing the unrecognized in a positive way. The portrait allows you to look at a person you wouldn’t normally look at and see that person on a deeper level.”

Williams added, “I think most of these people have been a part of the landscape of Seattle, they’ve been around for years. I think a portrait of the person makes them so much more memorable. Then you read their story and it makes more of an impact.”

At least 300 vendors sell Real Change News every month. Williams encourages artists interested in participating in the project to contact him.

“We can always use more artists. The more artists interested, the more vendors we can get into the show,” he said.

Derek Gundy was one of the first artists involved in the project. His acrylic painting of vendor David Rice hangs at the front of the Seattle City Hall lobby.

“The artist undergoes a transformation in how they think about these folks and [how they] approach them,” Gundy said. “Vendors are thrilled to see themselves [in a portrait] … There’s a lot of dignity in that and it probably makes the vendors feel special. It makes an effect. The trick is to connect with someone.”

Gundy is manager of Artists’ Edge in Poulsbo; he helped conduct the call for artists. Artists quickly vied for the opportunity to create a portrait of a Real Change vendor. A variety of mediums were used, including collage, fabric, graphite, paint, photography and print.

At the opening, the community gathered alongside Real Change vendors to celebrate the exhibit and the relationships that continue to form between vendors, readers, and artists.

“These people are your friends, your neighbors, veterans. They are people you grew up with,” Seattle Mayor Ed Murray said. “This reminds us we’re talking about real people with real challenges. I hope that creates an influence. By putting a face to homelessness, [it] means we have to end it.”

Dr. Wes Browning, a member of the Real Change board of directors and a columnist for Real Change News, spoke.

“I think there’s a larger support of homeless in the city than when we started and a better understanding, but we have a lot to do yet,” he said.

Browning said Real Change is constantly looking for new and creative ways to get that message across.

“Hopefully, them seeing faces of normal human beings [will show] they are not enemies. They don’t deserve hate. They deserve dignity like everyone else. It’s something we fight for.”

As a former homeless artist, Browning said, “There are people out there that care, and gradually they will build back a [homeless person’s] confidence to become a normal person — the person they were before they were homeless.”

The Real Change Portrait Project is on display at the main lobby of Seattle City Hall near the elevator and downstairs in the Anne Focke Gallery. The show has been displayed in coffee shops, bars and libraries throughout the state. This is the seventh location for the exhibit.

Vendor of the Year Lisa Sawyer was excited to see her portrait. “That’s me!” she said.

Sawyer started selling Real Change News in 2013.

“You’ve got to be dedicated in what you do. I work right down the street at Fourth and Union. I’m still holding it down three years later.” She said she’s been clean for more than 10 years and wants people to understand that not all homeless people are drug addicts.

“It’s a war zone to be homeless, but I’m not invisible,” she said.

Vendor Shelly Cohen is proud of his career and is happy the show is making a statement.

“The homeless and low-income people could be you in one, two or three paychecks — it’s that simple. Respect us. We’re people. As a vendor, I am an independent business owner. This is my business.”

Fadie Abouelsaad, a native of Egypt, is studying leadership at Seattle University.

“The portrait of the person makes them so much more memorable,” he said. “Then you read their bios and read their story. It makes a great impact.”

Vendor Vaughn Snoddy Taylor said, “I want [Real Change vendors] to have a role model like I did when I first started. Maybe one of these days I’ll be on this wall of fame too.”

Local Artists contributing to the project: Nina Dempsey, Nicole Gellinas, Derek Gundy, Kolton Hallwirth, Pamela Hastings, Monica Holsinger, Katrina Martin, Leigh Knowles Metteer, Albert Mulkey, Jaequelyn Speare, Sandra Steiner, Daine Stewart, Laura Stokes, Matt Ulrich, Jonah Uyyek, Janetmarie Valiga, Robin Paul Wiess, Diane Williams, and Jon Williams.

— Editor’s note: Reporter Sophie Bonomi contributed a photographic portrait to the project.