Mixed in the Six is an initiative which fosters community for mixed-race people in Toronto. On Saturday, February 23rd, Mixed in the Six held their first open mic coffee house at The Freedom Factory. Artists were encouraged to share music, poetry, story, speeches and comedy - original or otherwise - that focused on their experiences of being mixed race.
iAM Program students
JAYU (meaning “freedom” in Korean) is a registered charity and non-profit organization based in Toronto, founded by artist and human rights activist Gilad Cohen. The organization runs several programs supporting their mandate of “sharing human rights stories through the arts and engaging dialogue to lay the groundwork for positive social change.”
JAYU founder Gilad Cohen.
In 2015, JAYU introduced the iAM Program, a project that aims to empower marginalized youth in the Greater Toronto Area using photography and storytelling. The eight week program includes workshops held by professional photographers, one of which was lead by Danielle Da Silva, the founder of Photographers Without Borders (and my boss). Danielle invited me to come along and I enjoyed watching the students learn about ethical storytelling, effective campaigns, and be inspired by photography.
iAM students listen to Danielle’s presentation
Students participating in an exercise related to effective campaign images
Sharing images after doing a quick assignment
Students talk to Danielle Da Silva after her presentation
A quick photoshoot outside for an assignment
Learn more about JAYU and their other programs: Human Rights Film Festival, Human Rights Screening Series, and The Hum Podcast.
Support them by Donating
Turkish-Armenian photographer Ara Güler captured Istanbul, and the world, for nearly 70 years. Born in 1928, his fathers’ artist friends inspired him to pursue a career in cinema. He worked in film studios and took drama courses, but eventually became interested in photojournalism. Güler worked for several publications in Turkey as a journalist and gained the attention of international newspapers and magazines. In 1961 he was asked to join the Magnum Photo agency by one of its founding members, Henri Cartier-Bresson. Güler believed artists created the world around us and made many portraits of them and other noteworthy figures throughout the 1970s. When it came to photography, however, he felt it only reflected reality and therefore thought of himself as a visual historian.
Ara Güler died on Wednesday, October 17, 2018. He was 90 years old.
