Feet are the most underappreciated part of the human body.
When you think about it, our feet are what move us to be with our loved ones, pursue our ambitions, make it to job interviews; they are what keep the human race moving forward.
At left are several pairs of feet belonging to strangers who happened to walk by my lens three years ago, when I was in the Apple Store in New York City.
These people were undoubtedly from all walks of life, congregated on one street corner above the translucent building by chance.
They were in their separate solitudes, caught in their own minds and lives, and yet provided me with a sense of togetherness when I looked at the scene from a different angle.
I believe everyone feels alone in a crowd, yet there is a sense of human experience that connects us all into a web of humans; we are joined by our uniqueness.
All of the photos in this collection, taken during my time at Concord High School, show people variously alone and together, on and off campus.
The first in the series that follows were taken as students prepared for various Drama Club performances throughout the years. Productions required students to assume individual characters while working as part of an ensemble, so actors and crew members often found themselves alone and together simultaneously.
At left, Olivia Kinhan and GraceAnn Kontak twirl to Beyoncé music, a pre-show tradition, during last year’s Drama Club Dessert Theater performance.
These two have been best friends throughout high school and love spending time together, belting out show tunes.
This photo shows a strong example of togetherness, as Kinhan and Kontak expend their energy side by side. Their turned-away gazes, however, also suggest that people occupy personal worlds as well as shared ones.
Kontak will continue to dance and sing at college next year as an enrollee in Elon University’s musical theater program.
Pablo Rubin, a 2016 Concord High graduate now studying performance at New York University, is shown here rehearsing his role as the Engineer in Miss Saigon.
This picture was actually taken at a weekend rehearsal last spring for another production, Anything Goes, but the former company of Saigon wanted to relive their beloved production while watching a recording during a break.
Rubin imitated the Fosse-inspired dance moves that accompanied the song “The American Dream,” working in solitude among friends and fellow performers who also made the show a success.
CHS senior Sabrina Hart-Meyer worked for months last year to help elect Hillary Clinton the first woman president. Her passion was evident during this November 2016 canvassing effort in Bow.
This photo shows Hart-Meyer nervous and excited about the events that would unfold in the upcoming state primaries, though her demeanor changed when we went door-to-door asking for support. On came the huge smile and high, inviting voice to welcome support for her candidate.
On a dark winter morning last year, members of Tri-M, CHS’s National Music Honor society, trudged through the snow to sing to the elderly at the Merrimack Valley Nursing Home.
We first met up to practice with local able-bodied seniors who wanted to spread the joy of music with even older citizens. Every time we sang with them, this local chorus was amazed at our youthfulness and ability to pick up on the tunes so quickly.
The man whose face is illuminated always wore the most genuine smile when we caroled, and he never failed to accompany his fellow singers on flute.
Gazing at her personal artwork is junior Cecily Braley, shown here at Carter Hill on a particularly sunny day last fall just as the weather began to turn colder.
Under the shelter of a tree she let herself become immersed in the art of drawing.

About the photographer: Lindsay Irwin will attend Vassar College next fall to pursue a double major in theater and English.