Shall not be Recognized

In the November 2006 general election, Wisconsin voters passed a resolution to amend the state constitution to make it unconstitutional for the state to recognize or perform same-sex marriages and civil unions. In response, Will Fellows collaborated with photographer Jeff Pearcy to create Shall Not Be Recognized, an exhibit of photographic and verbal portraits of thirty same-sex couples in long-term, committed relationships. The name of the exhibit was taken from the amendment itself. Fellows conducted interviews with the couples, all residents of the Milwaukee area, and created the text for the exhibit. Pearcy conducted photo sessions with the couples and created the images for the exhibit. This digital collection brings together the photographs and oral history interviews from the project.