What is this about?
I'm a literacy and education specialist, currently completing my doctoral research at the University of Melbourne Graduate School of Education. I've spent 15 months living and working in northern Ghana. My doctoral research explores how out of school children understand and use literacies in everyday life. I invited 10 children, five boys and give girls, from two communities to participate. Although they are out of school, they were attending a semi-formal literacy and numeracy program run by a Ghanaian NGO and funded by UNICEF. They were given digital cameras for two weeks after an initial basic training period. Despite never having used a camera or taken a photograph, they produced over 4,000 images. Many of the photographs are truly incredible, both for what they reveal about literacy and schooling and their aesthetic quality as photographs.
Why an exhibition?
We hosted two community exhibitions, in Bunglung and Botingli, in northern Ghana last year. The children shared their 10 favourite photographs with family, friends, and community members. It was an amazing way to share the research and report back to the communities. Now, I want to bring the exhibition to Melbourne, and share their extraordinary photographs with a global audience. These photographs are challenging. They challenge our notions of what it means to be literate, non-literate, and out of school. The photographs also highlight the incredible capabilities and skills of these young girls and boys. most of whom have never attended formal schooling. They are aesthetically rich and complex, and I hope this exhibition will be a forum for communicating research with the public and not keeping it private within the academic community.
What do I need the funds for?
I need to raise funds to pay for the exhibition space and printing of photographs. The exhibition will be free to attend, and runs for two weeks from 24th May to 4th June 2016 at fortyfivedownstairs in Melbourne. The opening night is 24th May from 1700-1900, and I hope to see you there.
