100 Voices/Dimtsi shares Africa through eyes of children
http://www.columbusalive.com/content/stories/2014/02/06/arts-preview-100-voicesdimtsi-shares-africa-through-eyes-of-children.html
Upper Cup
Feb. 8-March 22
Opening reception: 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 8 (includes traditional Eritrean
food and a raffle)
79 Parsons Ave., Olde Towne East
100dimtsi.org
Facebook: 100 Voices/Dimtsi
Arts preview:
>From the February 6, 2014 edition
The February art show at Upper Cup coffee shop in Olde Towne East
documents, through the eyes of children, daily life in a forgotten corner
of the world.
"100 Voices/Dimtsi" is a collection of 50 photographs taken by children in
Keren and Asmara, Eritrea, an African country that borders Ethiopia and
Sudan.
The images look far away but familiar -- a mother prepares food for her
family, a group of young boys huddle together to give thumbs up to the
camera, a soccer ball nearby. The collection gives voice to an otherwise
mostly unheard population. They have average and profound things to say,
just like the rest of us.
"Hearing these children's voices is important because their presence in
this world is important," said Lwam Eyassu, the founder of the community
project. "With knowledge and understanding of different cultures and
traditions, we become better citizens of the world."
Last summer Eyassu, a Northern Kentucky University art student, traveled to
Eritrea, her parents' homeland, to conduct "100 Voices/ Dimtsi." (Dimtsi
means "voice" in Tigrigna.) "When I realized I was finally going to visit
Eritrea after more than a decade, I felt that it was an opportunity to do
something versus just treating it as a vacation," she said. "I thought it
would be interesting to have an art project that showed Eritrea from the
inside out and to do it in an untraditional way."
The students received 35mm disposable film cameras and very little
direction. The results speak for themselves.
"The youth really took this project seriously and understood that their
images would be showcased around the world, so they went out of their way
to capture things even many Eritreans weren't familiar with," Eyassu said.
"Being a photographer, I believe that photographs have the effortless power
to capture the essence of a person and their surroundings. It takes a
second to take the photo, but the image can leave a lasting impact."
Proceeds from sales of prints of the photographs benefit printing books of
the images for each child that participated in the project. After Columbus,
"100 Voices/ Dimtsi" will be shown in London and, tentatively, Asmara, the
Eritrean capital.
Received on Wed Feb 26 2014 - 21:04:03 EST