Las Fotos Project in Tijuana
Las Fotos Project is a non-profit, community-based photography program whose mission is to bring about positive change for young Latinas facing adversity. Since 2010 we have been working in the Los Angeles area providing a creative outlet for students, encouraging them to express their artistic talents and explore their imagination, while building self-confidence. This year we are excited to be expanding our program to various cities in Mexico, including our first launch site: Tijuana.
Through one-on-one mentoring, photography trainings, and assigned field projects, the students in Tijuana will learn the basics of photography and tools for critical visual analysis through a curriculum designed specifically for "cross-border" education. Our main goal is to promote visual literacy that connects young girls with their local communities and to unfamiliar cultures for both individual and community growth.
For most of our students, their communities extend beyond physical borders. As the closest Mexican city to Los Angeles and the most rapidly growing border city, Tijuana is experiencing a cultural renaissance that has been garnering international attention.
We will be emphasizing the connections between the students in LA and TJ via social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook, sharing images and projects online and reinforcing an international network of young women interested in the visual and media arts. Working with local artists and mentors, we hope to engage youth with positive, powerful, and creative role models.
The final project will include a handmade zine including each student's photographic work and writing, as well as a final framed image that will be shown in conjunction with the Esta Soy Yo final exhibition in Los Angeles at the end of the semester.
Our budget of $750 includes costs of printing photos, making copies and promotional material, fieldtrip transportation and entrance fees, journal-making and other art project materials, community space usage fees, and printing and framing for our final projects (+ a few ice cream cones here and there!).
We'll be thanking our donors with the following perks:
$10+ special social media thanks
$25+ digital copy of zine of student work
$50+ signed 8x10 print of student work
$75+ t-shirt + printed copy of zine
$100+ personalized video shout out + everything else!
At Las Fotos Project, we recognize that is a crucial time to offer the youth of Tijuana and the rest of Mexico the same opportunity to reflect on their experience, to forge new roles in a rapidly changing and progressively more visual environment, and to bridge the gaps that continue to divide our communities.
Please consider donating or follow us for updates on our future project sites including Mexico City and Oaxaca!
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram or visit our website for more information on how to get involved!
PS Check out this write up on our program in La Opinión, LA's spanish-language newspaper: Logran cambios positivos através de la fotografía