ABOUT:
Photographic Memory, or Photo Mem, is a unique program at AS220 in which Rhode Island’s underserved youth learn the craft of photography while gaining real-world experience by working as an apprentice to a professional photographer.

PROJECT:
With the economy on the skids and an unemployment rate of nearly 13 percent — one of the highest in the nation — more Rhode Islanders are turning to food pantries, soup kitchens, and food stamps to keep them from going hungry. Project Outreach in conjunction with Open Table of Christ Church are working to rebuild and renew life in the Washington Park neighborhood and surrounding area by providing food, clothing and many other services to this community. AS220’s Photo Mem crew has joined in this pursuit by documenting these events in an effort to bring to light the struggles that many are feeling in today’s economy.

OUTCOMES:
*Guided youth in a documentary photography class that built awareness of the massive hardships impacting the community through documentation of candid moments in the lives of community members.

*Facilitated the art direction, search and identification of exhibition spaces for student shows.