Scholars explore Democracy through photo’s
Check out the Market Photo Workshop photography project with high school students – looks interesting – great to get them visually aware and photography fluent at such a young age – hopefully the beginnings of some future brilliance. Tied into the 10th anniversary of the signing of our Constitution – it looks like an interesting mix of art and democracy – the Conhill is an awesome place to visit … and the Bag Factory in Fordsburg is really interesting too. Get amongst! Democracy Begins with Conversation A project of Market Photo Workshop in collaboration with the Living Together Project It is not often in the era of video games, the internet and cell phone chat rooms that high school students come together to discuss and learn about citizenship and constitutionalism. But they do come together in the Democracy Begins with Conversation project of Market Photo Workshop and the Living Together Project. People working in the arts created a creative learning environment to develop an understanding of the constitution and democracy, focusing on photographs, poems, prints, music, drama etc. On 9 December 2006, 150 high school learners from Orange Farm, Duduza and Soweto participating in the Living Together Project’s Democracy Begins with Conversation Project will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the signing of the South African Constitution at Constitution Hill. The proceedings will be opened by one of the Constitutional Court Judges, after which learners will present the performance pieces, poems and raps on Constitutional issues that they have created over the course of the 8 week project for their family and friends. After the performance there will be a discussion with the audience on where we have come from and where we are going 12 years into democracy. The afternoon programme will be hosted by The Bag Factory in Newtown, where photographs taken by learners during the programme at Market Photo Workshop and other visual artworks created during the project will be exhibited. This will be followed by a discussion with artists from the Bag Factory as the guest speakers on the role of art, culture and conversation in building democracy. Venues Photography Exhibition Opening: 9 December 2006 Time: 13h30 for 14h00 Venue: The Bag Factory Artists Studios 10 Mahlathini Street Fordsburg Johannesburg Closes 12 December 2006. The gallery is open daily 10h00 – 16h00. Performances 9 December 2006 Time : 09h30 to 10h30 Tour of Constitutional Hill and Court 10h30 to 13h00 Performance by Youth Venue: Constitutional Hill Kotze street Braamfontein Johannesburg For more information: Market Photo Workshop Iqbal Tladi or Nonceba Ntintili Tel: 011 834 1444 Fax: 011 834 1447 info@marketphotoworkshop.co.za or The Living Together Project Betsi...
What are you doing for World Aids Day?
Oh yes, it’s on Friday. Did you know that by 2010 it is estimated that there will be 22 million Aids orphans. Come on Representers, do your bit to support all the many initiatives going on around World Aids Day on Dec 1. We have two projects to recommend – both involving photography or art, we’ll let you know what else we come across. The first is a digital storytelling project initiated by href=”http://www.photovoice.org/html/projects/photovoiceprojects/africaandmiddleeast/youthphotoreflect/projectbackground/” mce_href=”http://www.photovoice.org/html/projects/photovoiceprojects/africaandmiddleeast/youthphotoreflect/projectbackground/” >Photovoice.org Working with youth in Orange Farm, they are training them in the use of digital photography and IT – this is the first exhibition showing their work. The second project ” I Love You Positive Or Negative “ is an Alliance Francaise collaboration with France-based “Designing Hope” organisation. Local artists have interpreted their feelings around Aids and one of Represent’s friends, Rhett Martyn is part of the crew. Go and see it! ====================== PHOTO REFLECT Exhibition Event – Witness to HIV/AIDS “We are proud to be from Orange Farm, we are proud to be South Africans. We want to invite our audience to listen to us and to learn from us so we can take action together” – Members of the Photo Reflect youth project. In October 2006, the international charity organisation PhotoVoice and local partner the Vukuzenzele Reflect Community Organisation (VRCO) that operates in the township of Orange Farm, began a two year programme working with youth infected and affected by HIV/Aids. With participants aged between 16 and 33, the Photo Reflect project is an attempt to empower the youth of Orange Farm with the necessary tools to tackle the many challenges they face living in a marginalized and vulnerable community. Through the specific use of digital story-telling and digital photography, the participants are given the means to document and voice their personal experiences, deepest concerns and attitudes regarding HIV/AIDS, whilst increasing their capacity and to generate an income through photographic or IT skills training. It is a fact that young people in this country are the most severely affected by AIDS. The largest proportion of HIV infections occur amongst people between the ages of 15 and 24. However, statistics aside these are unique individuals whose daily realities cannot be underplayed. This project seeks to understand the barriers that limit behavioural change and prevention of the disease as well as combat the stigma and stereotype attached to people living with HIV/AIDS in disadvantaged communities across South Africa. Equipped with their own digital cameras, the participants of the project began a series of intensive workshops that are set to continue until Christmas 2006 and resume again in January 2007 with an emphasis on...
Night of 1000 drawings – TONIGHT !!
After 4 months of campaigning, tonight is “Night of a 1000 drawings” Everyone should come thru and buy drawings at R100 each:) (credit cards accepted) and in doing so support Paballo, an inner city homeless care organisation. The exhibition is at 95 commissioner street, btwn rissk and loveday street. Free Parking in the Harry Hofmeyer Parking on Simmons St. Short yet very secure walk to the exh… ib.. where there are plenty of guards on route. 19h00 Drawings may not be touched/ taken down. Only at 20h30. will the public be allowed to take down their drawings and pay for them. Those who have not RSVP’ed, it’s totally kool just register on the ground floor before heading up to the exhibition floor. So invite Everybuddy:) Cash bars available. Harris Tweed will be doing an acoustic set and HEADspace will be following with live Jazz. Miss Buttons spinning out a chilled set. Map and a sneak peak of the exhib space on our Blog spot 1000drawings.blogspot.com thanks a billion trillion and bless ================================= 2 Nov Big ups to the peeps behind this project – it’s very simple – they’re asking you to put pen or paint or charcoal or whatever to paper- A5 size that is – and drop your artwork off at their offices. Your drawing will then be sold for R100. All proceeds will go to the Paballo inner city feeding initiative. Come on – get creative! Grand Finalle Deadline: Jozi 1st Nov The Night of a 1000 Drawings is an exhibition where drawings donated by everybuddy get collected and sold to the public for R100 a pop. It’s all happening on 16 November, thanks to Urban Ocean, the crew transforming Jozi into a New York vibe and restoring the old Security Building especially for the event. All proceeds go directly to Paballo, an organisation that has fed and provided basic medical attention to over 300 inner-city homeless people every Wednesday night since 1989. Maximum respect goes out to G-mo, local customised animal friendly sneaks and shoe peeps, for handling the Cape Town collection & exhib “Mother City loves Inner City” on Friday 13th October at Asoka, Son of Dharma. Sadly drawings won’t be sold in CT, but in compensation G-mo have put 2pairs of shoes up for draw strictly for CT peeps. Draw anything, with anything, on anything .. Only thing is A5 in size. So draw as much as possible. And hand em in.. Grand Finalle Deadline: Jozi 1st Nov. Cape Town 11Oct. No mounting necessary, Pls date and sign drawings. pls Attach a name, postal and email addy to the drop off envelope. Jozi drawings...
Should the revolution be photographed???
Here’s a powerful piece sent to us by SowetoRocks.com – it talks of the new struggle for the youth – HIV and AIDS and how the youth need to, like their ancestors 30 years ago, take the situation into their own hands if it is to truly change. Today we were listening to a popular radio station and heard one of the female freedom fighters comparing the youth of ’76 with the youth… of today – we felt that her stance was an important one – Our take on what she was saying was that “The youth of ’76 had DISCIPLINE – they knew how to focus, how to get it together and how to move forward as one.” Question is, can our youth find the same discipline? Do they need an iconic image to remind them of this discipline? What do you think? Here it is: June 16th is a day set aside to celebrate the spirit and power of South African Youth. We proudly honour the sacrifices of the generation of children past; and there is no more powerful symbol of this than Sam Nzima’s famous photograph of our children bearing the bloodied body of Hector Pietersen. As you might expect, the world is a very different place for today’s youth. While they no longer face the oppressor’s bullets, boys and girls today face a far more insidious threat: the HIV virus. Society also sees today’s youth very differently, for our legal system rules the age of sexual consent is 16meaning it’s legally ok for a 16 year old to have sex with 49 year old if both consent. We do ask them to wait to 18 before they can elect a president, bear arms in our armed forces, drive to the club or consume alcohol. Somehow the responsibilities that go along with these rights are too much for 16 year olds. In our HIV and AIDS documentary UNZIPPED (sponsored by Levi’s Red 4 Life and run last year on SABC1), one of the most poignant moments is when a 17-year-old teen declared, “we need to realize that we are children playing adult games.” Clearly we need to ask ourselves when do today’s children become adults. (As an aside, when the parent protested that her daughter had no right to appear in our documentary without her consent, SABC required that the teen be visually distorted. Old enough to do it but not old enough to talk about it.) Generally accepted policy to prevent the spread of HIV amongst our youth is summarized as follows: A.) abstain B.) be faithful C.) condomize D.) delay having sex Given the...
LOL WITH DAVID KAU WHILE YOU DO YOUR BIT!
Serious issues don’t always have to be dealt with seriously. BE A HERO FOR ONE NIGHT, let us tell you how… Fact : If South Africans were to be honest with themselves about our crime situation, I think it would be safe to say that we are facing a crisis in this country. We talk a lot about crime and other problems that we face as the youth. That in itse… lf is also a huge problem, we just TALK! What are WE doing about the situation that we are faced with? We can’t look to President Mbeki to solve all our problems. Many of the solutions lie with the citizens themselves. Yes, that includes YOU too. This Friday, one of our favourite comedians David Kau literally puts his money where his mouth is. He will be putting on his “I DID THESE JOKES FIRST” show at the Civic Theatre and all the proceeds will go towards the SAPS Widows and Orphans Fund that was set up to help those family members who lose their loved ones while in the line of duty. Our police force members put their necks on the line for us everyday for salaries that are almost laughable. Do your bit by supporting this initiative and have an awesome time while you’re at it! Date: Friday 4th August Time: 8:30pm Venue: Johannesburg Nelson Mandela Civic Theatre Damage: R100, tickets are available at Computicket **************************************************** We bring you a smashing new series for Represent – “ASK”. She will be interviewing a whole bunch of crazy people to find out more about them. And we kick off the first interview with our favourite local comedian, DAVID KAU! Don’t you love his photo?! BORN: 18TH APRIL 1978 SIBLINGS: 22 YEAR OLD SISTER HIGH SCHOOL ATTENDED: STD 7 CAMBRIDGE COLLEGE, LANSDOWN ROAD CAPE TOWN; STD 8 RYLANDS HIGH SCHOOL, ATHLONE CAPE TOWN; STD 9 & 10 MERIDIAN COLLEGE, PRETORIA WORST SUBJECT AT SCHOOL: CHEMISTRY ANY SPORTING TALENTS: SOCCER GREATEST ACHIVEMENTS: NOT YET BEST POSSESSION: FOUNDATION FOR MY HOUSE IN KYALAMI Favourite Website? www.11kau.com On the scale of 1 – 10 how cool do you rate you are? ASK YOUR VIEWERS & OR LISTENERS & OR SURFERS AT HOME – I THINK I’M F&ING COOL!!! I JUST NEED TO DRESS UP A BIT MORE What do you think of kids these days? THEY’RE UNDER A LOT OF PEER PRESSURE, TOO CLEVER FOR THEIR AGE, AND F-ing FULL OF SHIT What bores you about interviews? THEY’RE FREAKIN BORING! SAME KAK QUESTIONS I’VE HEARD BEFORE WHICH SOUND LIKE THEY WERE WRITTEN BY THE SAME JOURNALIST WHO HAS NEVER READ ANYTHING THAT’S EVER BEEN WRITTEN...
Africa in Desperate Stress…
Thanks to Karabo for these touching words on HIV/Aids. Need we say more? I travel through these dark walls filled with red lining, My travel is accompanied by the gusts of blood, which flow within these walls. The depletion of my inner being is in the weakening of the body, which houses these walls, Exposed to the reflections of pain given of by the eyes of men, women and chil…dren who profess themselves as African on a daily basis through a simple quest for life. I experience the effects of globalisation on the lives of many through the continuous travels to and fro hospitals. I’ve been passed through needles of pain through the bleeding souls of many, I’ve seen desire, dreams and passion turn into stale fragments of broken mirrors reflecting politics and legislature governing the existence of the house which protects these walls I’ve made my home. Through the many travels I seem to spread through colour, ethnic groups and cultural barriers, I’ve broken homes, destroyed lives and have become the root of a war against humanity and the right to life. I too have life and only seek to live; yet I cannot find shelter in the acidic tears of generations portraying a civilization of man that seeks to find itself through the death of entire societies. I am HIV/AIDS& I am the present, the future& Copyright 2004 Aluta...
Proudly brought to you by:
