This course will have two focuses:

Explore our relationship with objects and things and documentation of the object through photographic processes. (Pin hole camera, cyanotype, ray o grams, plant-based emulsions etc.)

To begin we will watch a brief video “what they took with them”, a documentary captured in images and poetry inspired by firsthand testimonies of individuals and families fleeing Sudan. Refugees, victims of fires and hurricanes, individuals and families experiencing homelessness, fleeing their homes with nothing will be considered, in addition to our favorite things or things that have personal significance. Ideas will be communicated both visually through photography, (Pin hole cameras, and rayographs cyanotype), and if a student chooses through the written word, poetry, short essay, exquisite corpse, or other appropriate formats.

Week One:

After the short powerful video, we will debrief and move on to an activity where students will start to think about what they would take if they had to leave their home immediately.

We will also construct a pinhole camera, so it is ready to use the following week.

Week Two- Five:

Students will be instructed on photographic techniques during each class will have the opportunity to experiment. These processes will include use of the darkroom, using a pinhole camera, cyanotype, plant emulsions, and rayographs.

Students will create a simple portfolio to hold their images.