A joint photo art project between the Lighthouse youth in Sierra Leone, West Africa and youth in Grace Community Church in Seal Beach.
Broken-Beautiful Gallery
Emily
Santigie
Jenelle
Joseph T.
Joseph M.
Jeremy
Emily
Ibrihim
Rachel
Hassan
Rachel
Joseph M.
Santigie
Rachel
Joseph T.
Joanna
Kent
Beatrice
Kaylee
Michael
Alimamy
Joanna
Abu Bakarr
Emily
Sheku
Rachel
Ibrihim
Ian
Alimamy
Rachel
Joanna
Abu Bakarr
Kayla
Beatrice
Foday
Kaylee
Amber
Beatrice
Kymee
Papane
Kaylee
Ibrihim
Zack
Michael
Santigie
Joanna
The concepts of brokenness and beauty have threads that touch all of our lives. As we consider what it means to see beauty in the midst of the brokenness in the world, we seek to know hope. Encouraging youth to think about these ideas in their own lives was the goal of this project. Youth from Sierra Leone were given disposable cameras to capture images from their everyday lives which contemplate the ideas of brokenness and beauty. A year later youth from Grace Community Church in Seal Beach were also given disposable cameras.
The photos from Africa have traveled far. Disposable cameras were exposed to numerous x-ray machines before flying across the ocean. They also encountered the extreme heat of Sierra Leone. Many participants had never used a camera before. As such these photos show signs of stress: they may have a finger in the frame, some are grainy. We have kept the photos as they were taken, and have not attempted to 'fix' them as we feel this represents part of the reality of life in Sierra Leone.
When viewing the pairings of images, we challenge you to look past initial impressions of broken vs. beautiful. Consider instead how images have aspects of both. For Christians, the cross is an amazing example of two seemingly contradictory aspects coming together-the brokenness of the crucifixion of Jesus, the beauty of his sacrifice for the sins of the world. Much is redeemed even in brokenness.
It is our hope that these images cause you to think deeply about the duality of experiences and how the duality can create something more when viewed in light of God's love for us, which is shown by Christians through their love for one another. Contemplate how the pairing of images makes them stronger, points out strengths that might not be noticed if they were viewed alone. Similarly when we love one another we encourage and highlight the strengths of our neighbors. By participating in the viewing of this artwork you are in a small way acknowledging neighbors in Sierra Leone and Seal Beach. Let us seek to know how we can love each other.
Kimberly Hocking & Cami Sigler
Project Coordinators, USA & Sierra Leone
