We asked our intern Marian Williams to complete one of the activities in our Teaching Resource packet created for the Dis/placements: Revisitations of Home virtual project. Marian chose this prompt: “Out in the Open: Create a series of four or five photographs to document a facet of your community usually kept out of view that you want to bring to attention. For example, you might identify police searching or interrogating young people in your neighborhood, restaurant workers who work in kitchens behind closed doors, or domestic workers who clean offices and private homes. Consider why the activities portrayed in your photos are often done out of view. Why is it important for you to bring this out into the open? Record your opinion in an artist statement to share alongside your photographs.”
Check out the Teaching Resource packet and the other activities by clicking here!
This activity presents a different way of engaging with the community you live in, encouraging you to consider multiple perspectives and the more hidden aspects of your neighbourhood. I think this activity is important because it deepens our understanding of what goes into creating viable communities and the role of a myriad of people that participate, maintain, and shape them. It ties into the Dis/placements exhibition by calling attention to the broad nature of home and the ways people come to define it sometimes in contrasting manners.
These four photos highlight one of the major things kept out of view in my community: grounds maintenance. This is often done in the shadows because it takes away from the facade of having a ‘perfect’ scenery. It’s important to bring this out into the open as it gives recognition to the people that work hard to maintain the grounds of communities on and off-campus.
Why don’t you try the activity yourself?