In her photo series “City of Brotherly Love,” photographer Hannah Price responds to experiences with street harassment in Philadelphia. She described the images as “a response to my subjects looking at me, and myself as an artist looking back.”

Her series was displayed in a recent exhibit at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Upon visiting the exhibit with street harassment activist Holly Kearl, I was instantly moved and left with questions about who this photographer is and what made her “click.” I had the pleasure of meeting with the talented Hannah Price soon after. Here’s what she had to say:

Nuala Cabral (NC): What inspired you to create a photo exhibit that brings attention to street harassment?

Hannah Price (HP): The only thing that allowed me to create this type of work, are the men who harass me on the street everyday. It was a basic response with my camera to turn the attention away from me.  Like I said before being harassed by men is a part of my everyday life and this project is a documentation of my life as a black woman in Philadelphia with a background from suburbia Colorado.

NC: What are your hopes and expectations for this project?

HP: My only hope is to help people understand how uncomfortable overtly expressing oneself sexually to another person can be.  There are other ways of communicating an interest with another person.

NC: How did men react when you took their picture?

HP: Most of the men were surprised I responded because the typical response is avoidance.  After confronting and taking their photograph they respected my disinterest.

NC: How have people responded to your photo exhibit?

HP: Most responses to my project have been quite positive.  No one has yet expressed any backlash.  Most people are interested in the process and experience of photographing men in a unpleasant, semi-dangerous situation.

NC: What did you learn in the process of creating and displaying this project?

HP: I have learned that the only way we can stop sexual harassment is by getting rid of the certain sexual media that children have access to at such a young age.

NC: What are your thoughts about the movement to end street harassment?

HP: I think this movement is inevitably necessary, especially if society still respects their own human decency.

Nuala Cabral is an award-winning filmmaker, educator and activist in the Philadelphia-area.