Chris Reiner trolled Dumpsters and street corners to create his vision of homelessness.

His finished artwork, called "Adrift on a Chinatown Junk: Homeless, Powerless ... and Human," features a shopping cart topped with a crown of shellacked newspapers. In the cart, discarded electronics — everything from a toaster to a television — lay atop bedding.

"If you look all the way in the vessel, there's a mirror, because it could be any of us," said Reiner, of Waimalu, whose piece is among those featured at a new exhibition about homelessness at The ARTS at Marks Garage in Chinatown. "I just want people to be empathetic."

"Shelter," which runs through Feb. 24 at the gallery, accompanies a series of talks on affordable housing and homelessness. The pieces in the show are meant to generate conversation about what home means, said Rich Richardson, Arts at Marks creative director.

One work features square-foot blocks of land from different parts of the island, along with quotes for buying the parcels based on the going rate for property in the areas. One artist fashioned a 4-foot tall house out of paper, complete with slippers by the door.

Community artwork also is displayed in the gallery. Children at the state's Next Step shelter in Kaka'ako drew their definition of home with fingerpaint. Kids who live at affordable housing projects in Chinatown created construction paper dioramas of their dream homes.

Richardson said there are about 20 contemporary artists in the show, and more than 100 community artists.

"Chinatown is especially appropriate for this type of exhibition because it has the highest concentration of affordable housing," Richardson said, adding that he hopes the show will transform the gallery into a forum for discussion and change.

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.