Photo Workshop Shedding Light On Homelessness
"It's the familiar, favorite game of 'Show and Tell,' but we're not holding up vacation photos from Florida to illustrate what we did on our summer break," says the instructor of a photography workshop, Lisa Powers.
"We're teaching members of the homeless community in Ann Arbor to take photos and then discuss issues relevant to their lives...which arise from the images in those photos."
That is the basic premise behind the Language of Light workshop, facilitated by local photographer and CURRENT editor Lisa S. Powers and funded by a grant from the Washtenaw Council for the Arts. Held during a weekend in June, the workshop provided plastic, medium-format cameras, film, developing and instruction to the eight men who are -- or recently were -- housed by the Shelter Association of Washtenaw County (of which Powers is a board member). The men, who range in age from 25 to 55, used the cameras during a 10-day period, and then regrouped for discussion about the photos.
"The results are amazing," Powers said. "Not only did the guys express appreciation at the chance to document their lives and discuss the needless stereotypes that get conferred onto them because they are homeless, but I think we've created a powerful visual as well as verbal statement that everyone who lives and works in this town can appreciate and learn from."
A similar workshop is planned for homeless women and children from the Shelter and other social agencies on July 12 & 13, from 2-5 pm both days. Agencies should register their clients in advance by calling the Shelter Office at 662-2829 by July 11.
The idea for the workshop was inspired by education techniques created by U-M Public Health professor Caroline Wang, who published a book recently about the women in rural China whom she taught using her "Photo Voice" concept. Caroline Wang and graduate student Jennifer Cash contributed their expertise to the workshop, and are working on an academic article about the project for a prestigious public health journal. Other contributing artists include freelance photographers Linda Wan and J. Adrian Wylie, who documented the workshop and lent inspiration and a critical photographic eye to the artwork and discussions.
"A lot of great things are going to come out of this workshop," Powers noted, including a four-page spread in the September issue of AGENDA, the chance for the artists to sell their works at an exhibit at the Michigan Guild of Artists and Artisans in late August, and a slide show planned for mid-September at the Michigan Theater.