Worthington Photography Blog

Big Work at Art 180's Big Show

Back when I was in college at Georgetown, service was a big part of my life: I tutored ESL kids with English, served as a student adviser for our department, and was a founding member of a student run organization that raised awareness for eating disorders on campus. After graduating, I spent 10 months teaching art to kids in New Delhi, many of whom were afflicted with physical disabilities as a result of polio. Many inactive years have passed since then and, despite a million valid excuses, I have felt increasingly disconnected from my community.

So this year I wanted to find a way to use photography for the forces of good... not that weddings aren't good enough but I'm always thinking: is there a medium out there more powerful than photography or film? Photographs are everywhere, vying for our attention. We are bombarded every single day with images from the media and advertisements. What do photographs lead us believe about the world, our country, our culture and ourselves?

I was fortunate to find Art 180, an organization dedicated to turning communities around through art (hence the clever name). Art 180 provides after school arts programming in disciplines as diverse as poetry, music, fashion and more across the Richmond area, targeting at risk middle school students on the brink of adulthood. They are doing great things so check them out....

Through Art 180 I learned that the middle school in my backyard, Martin Luther King Jr, doesn't have a yearbook since they can't sell enough to recover the cost of production. Nor do the kids get to have school pictures taken by a professional photographer since not enough parents commit to buying packages. And so it was that our after school Photography Club was born last February with two goals: 1) to learn how to use cameras, light and composition to make art and 2) to create a photo memory book for the student body that gives everyone in the 8th grade an opportunity to share reflections on their present at MLK and their future beyond it. The book is still in production and I will share it when I have it, its going to be waaaaay cooler than your typical yearbook. Our 5 club members learned the necessary skills to work as a team and photograph their classmates for the book using a digital camera, professional lighting and editing software. Here's a photo that club member Ahmad took of Quetta, myself, Brooke, Myrtle and Jerreka while we were reviewing the results of our light test on professional picture day.


Last Wednesday we celebrated the success of our first goal at Art 180's Big Show, an event where students from all Art 180 programs present their accomplishments through performance and exhibition to parents, teachers and the community at large at Plant Zero, a local art center. I was so busy helping the kids prepare that I actually forgot my camera (AAAHHH) and therefore lack pictures from the event but I would like to introduce my students nonetheless and share the work that we displayed at the show. If there was a theme to the photos the group created, it developed organically through field trips and assignments into "who we are/where we are".


I am SO PROUD of these five students, I have learned more from them than I have the room to express here. If you have feedback for these young people, please PLEASE post your comments below so I can share your thoughts with them, they would love to hear it. Let me introduce you, in no particular order, to the Martin Luther King Jr. Middle Photography Club:

This is Jerreka...


...and her artwork along with titles:

Changes


Listen


Focus


Hypnotize

This is Brooke...


...and her artwork along with titles:

Me


Anxiety


This is Ahmad...


...and his artwork below with titles.

Past, Present, Future


Check My Feet, You Don't Have These


?


Wind in Her Hair

This is Jaquetta...


and her artwork below with titles.

Black and White Portrait


The Cemetery


Last is not least: This is Myrtle...


and her artwork along with titles.

I Was, I Am, I Will Be


The Sky is the Limit


The Brightness of the Dead


The Branches


The Reflection

A very special thanks goes out to my two team volunteers, Eric Van Der Hyde and Allison Spiller, for all their time, energy and creativity. I could NOT have done it without the two of you and will miss you when school ends. Thanks also to Eric Anderson at Art 180 for supporting us behind the scenes, to Amy Koch at Art 180 for her professional and personal support 24-7, to Rasul Elder for developing the prompts, to Cathy Strong for promoting the cause throughout the school, to Mr. Ellis for lending us the school cameras when we needed them and for being such an active part of our club and to an angel I know only as Jenni for framing the prints for us.

I will share more as I receive it, thanks for reading!

posted by Mel @ 4:42 PM