art empowers

Last night I finally saw the documentary “Born into Brothels” directed by Zana Briski and Ross Kauffman. It is really an amazing documentary. It’s about a photographer who was working in Calcutta’s red light district and how she formed relationships with the children of the prostitutes there. She gave 8 children cameras and taught them how to take photographs. By doing so she opened up the world to them and this film documents their journey.
Anyone who says that art is unnecessary and superfluous needs to see this film and see how art has the power to instill hope. Art can empower.
One of the things that I enjoyed about this film was just looking at the actual photography that these children took. They found beauty in an often cruel and ugly world- A women bending over while she cleaned a pot, her red sari drape falling to the ground. A broken window against a stained wall. The worn faces of the people around them.

I play around with my camera all the time, but I never really know what I’m doing. I use my photos in the mixed media pieces that I make. Since I usually alter the photo, I don’t stress about it being a “good” photo. I should take a class and learn all about aperture and what all those buttons mean on my camera. I played around with my digital today. And took this photo of myself.
Not the most flattering picture, but I like how the background came out so white and my face blurred. My eyes look abnormally large. Not sure how that happened! But a happy accident.