Vacant buildings and influential women highlight the importance of not being overlooked

Decaying buildings and successful women don't seem like a combination that go hand-in-hand, but the significance of their merger is stunningly obvious when looking at a photographer's recent photo series.

#Overlooked is a portrait series by Shane Wynn that she says is a culmination of two ideas -- first to reveal the hidden potential of vacant spaces in downtown Akron, Ohio and second to celebrate some of the city's empowered women. She was inspired to take on the project after seeing the inside of one of the city's long-abandoned buildings, and used funding from the Knight Foundation's Knight Arts Challenge to make her vision a reality.

The underutilized spaces photographed in the series include a former Firestone pump house, an old YMCA and the Selle Gear Company building. "Many people have no visual frame of reference for what these impressive spaces actually look like," Wynn said. Some business owners gladly opened their doors to her -- but she says others, "thought I sounded crazy for wanting to shoot a woman in an 'ugly space.'"

Leaders of the arts and non-profits, a former teacher, a researcher, a refugee, an immigrant, a working mother -- all of varying ages, ethnicities and sexual orientations help convey Wynn's message that successful women aren't represented enough in positions of power in Akron. "You can look any direction in our city and have plain sight of a talented woman," Wynn added.

%shareLinks-quote="I hope for women to be seen and heard and to empower each other." type="quote" author="Shane Wynn " authordesc="Fine Arts photographer" isquoteoftheday="false"%

While some of the spaces have already been renovated and revitalized, Wynn would also like to see them be transformed into spaces for the arts, restaurants that represent Akron's immigrant population and affordable spaces for small business owners and youth centers.

Wynn collaborated with another project called Curated Storefronts and the images are now on display in storefront windows in downtown Akron and she hopes to, "remind us all to re-imagine what we may have #overlooked."