PPRC Photography Projects
Gallery News:
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The PPRC Photography Project Turns 5!
Join us April 6 for a reception, exhibition and book signing. Find out about the retropsective, full-color catalog here.
PPRC Photography Project Director to present at At the Crossroads: A Community Arts and Development Convening
PPRC Photography Project Director Mel Watkin, along with PPRC Photography Project Instructor Chinyere Oteh, will present at the Regional Arts Commission’s At the Crossroads conference, March 25-27. Their talk, titled Photography's Role in Representation, will be a part of the larger discussion about art and social change. For more information or to register, visit the conference page.
Photography Project Exhibitions
Currently in the PPRC Gallery
Coming Next to the PPRC Gallery
Now Showing:
January 19, 2010 in the PPRC Gallery:
Photography Project: Russian St. Louis
This PPRC Photography Project portrays the images captured by members of St. Louis's Russian immigrant community. The group met for ten weeks to study digital photography and discuss their photographs, which capture what it is to be Russian in St. Louis. St. Louis’s Russian immigrant community, of just under 17,000, is made up of a population that differs in religion, ethnicity, and geographical origin. Since the mid 20th century they have relocated to different neighborhoods throughout St. Louis city and county, while working in an equally broad range of professions. Russia’s great diversity, strong work ethic and tight knit families have kept many Russians busy with their own lives. To quote Dmitri Kabargin, a participant in this Photography Project and President of the Greater St. Louis-- Samara Sister City Committee, “It is amazing how people who emigrate from a country as huge as Russia do not get connected with each other and do not build a strong community in a small city like St. Louis. There are a lot of small groups, small Russian communities, within St Louis but there is no one place where you can learn about all of them. Projects like this let people know about each other and help to build a stronger community.”
One Exhibit in Two Locations!
The Details:
PPRC Photography Project Gallery, January 19 – March 14, 2010
(South hall, fourth floor, Social Science/Business Building at UMSL)
Info. 314-516-5273 • Website: http://pprc.umsl.edu
Gallery hours: daily 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Opening Reception: January 19, noon to 1 p.m.
Gallery talk with Russian St. Louis participants, Photography Project director, Mel Watkin, instructor Ron Laboray and Dmitri Kabargin, President of the Greater St Louis-Samara Sister Cities Committee
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Astoria Restaurant: January 26 – March 14, 2010
12949 Olive Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63141 (Arcade Plaza at Olive & Fee Fee)
Info. 314-878-7711 • Website:stpatrickcenter.org/McMurphysGrill.aspx
Hours: Tues. – Friday 11 - 2 p.m., Tues. – Thurs. 5 - 9 p.m., Fri. & Sat. 5 – 11 p.m.
Opening Reception: January 26, 5:30 - 7 p.m.
Gallery talk with Russian St. Louis participants, Photography Project director, Mel Watkin, instructor Ron Laboray and Dmitri Kabargin, President of the Greater St Louis-Samara Sister Cities Committee
Coming March 23 to the PPRC Gallery:
Photography Project: Lydia's House
A place of healing and a voice of hope for abused women and their children
This PPRC Photography Project features images captured by some of the children receiving shelter from Lydia’s House in St. Louis. Lydia’s House “works in faith to end domestic violence by being a place of healing and a voice of hope for abused women and their children.” Founded in 1965, Lydia’s House provides abused women and their children with food and shelter, as well as the time and support they need to be able to move from emergency shelter into safe, independent, permanent housing. Clients may receive assistance from Lydia’s House for up to two years while they rebuild their lives, obtain training and/or jobs and satisfy their medical and legal needs.
This Photography Project directly engaged the children who are living at Lydia’s House. In order to protect their privacy while still allowing each child to express who they are, Photography Project instructor Chinyere E. Oteh took a creative approach to self-portraiture, teaching the children to photograph their shadows, create silhouette collages, and write self-expressive poetry. The children also worked together to write a story they called “I Am Lydia’s House.”
Read Photography Project instructor Chinyere E. Oteh's full essay here.
Exhibit Details:
PPRC Photography Project Gallery, March 23 – May 16, 2010
(South hall, fourth floor, Social Science/Business Building at UMSL)
Info. 314-516-5273 • Website: http://pprc.umsl.edu
Gallery hours: daily 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Opening Reception: March 23, noon to 1 p.m.
Gallery talk with Photography Project Director, Mel Watkin, Instructor, Chinyere Oteh and Lydia’s HouseDirector Ellen Reed and Children’s Program Coordinator, Sarah Godden
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Urban Eats Café and The Urban Arts Collective: March 30 – June 27, 2010
3301 Meramec St., St. Louis, MO 63118
Website:http://www.urbaneatscafe.com/play
Hours: Mon.–Sat. 10 - 8 p.m., Sun. 10-3 p.m.
Opening Reception: March 30, 5:30 - 7 p.m.
Gallery talk with Photography Project Director, Mel Watkin, Instructor, Chinyere Oteh and Lydia’s HouseDirector Ellen Reed and Children’s Program Coordinator, Sarah Godden
Recently in the PPRC Gallery:
Photography Project: City Seeds Urban Farm
(A program of Gateway Greening and St. Patrick Center)
The whole story behind City Seeds Urban Farm »Read it here
This Photography Project features images in the life of an urban farm. City Seeds Urban Farm is a unique program that pairs clients from St. Patrick Center with horticulture training from Gateway Greening. Its mission is “to provide job training, therapeutic horticulture, and education for individuals dealing with chronic homelessness, substance abuse, mental illness, and criminal records; increase production and distribution of locally grown fresh food; and serve as a resource for community education, sustainable urban agriculture and food security.” It is an innovative idea that provides solutions to the myriad challenges so common in major cities. produce harvested from the City Seeds Urban Farm is sold at North City Farmer’s Market, among other locations.
One Exhibit in Two Locations!
The Details:
PPRC Photography Project Gallery, November 17, 2009 thru January 10, 2010
(South hall, fourth floor, Social Science/Business Building at UMSL)
Info. 314-516-5273 • Website: http://pprc.umsl.edu
Gallery hours: daily 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Opening Reception: November 17, noon to 1 p.m.
The reception featured gallery talks with Photography Project director, Mel Watkin, Instructor, Chinyere Oteh, and Gateway Greening’s Annie Mayrose, and and Ariel Roads-Buback with City Seeds participants
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McMurphy’s Grill : December 15, 2009 thru January 10, 2010
614 North 11th St., St. Louis, MO, 63101
Info. (314) 231-3006 • Website:stpatrickcenter.org/McMurphysGrill.aspx
Hours: Tuesday-Friday 11:00 am-3:00 pm
For special evening and Saturday hours email Mel at watkinm@umsl.edu
Opening Reception: December 15, 5:30 - 7 pm
Gallery talks Photography Project director, Mel Watkin, instructor, Chinyere Oteh, and Gateway Greening’s Annie Mayrose, and Ariel Roads-Buback with City Seeds participants
Photography Project: Mississippi Tows:
Mississippi River pilots and their crews
The story behind Mississippi Tows »Read it here
This Photography Project features pictures of life aboard barges on the Mississippi River. Most of the images selected for this exhibition reflect the beauty of the Mississippi River and the people who crew its working boats. Other photographs, however, document the gigantic scale of river operations. In many photos deckhands appear tiny against the huge locks and cargo barges they manage with apparent ease. The images were taken by staff and crew from two companies: J.B. Marine, a St. Louis dry dock and barge repair service, and AEP River Operations, a large shipping concern with offices in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.
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Read the Riverfront Times article about this exhibit »click here
To read the St. Louis Suburban Journals article on the exhibit »click here.
See Point-of-View: Granite City on YouTube!
Ron Laboray, one of the Photography Project instructors, documents the Photography Project as it documents Granite City, Illinois »View documentary.
This PPRC Photography Project was conducted in conjunction with Coordinated Youth & Human Services (CYHS) of Madison County, Illinois. CYHS is a not-for-profit social service agency serving Granite City, Madison, Venice, and surrounding communities in southwestern Illinois. CYHS was founded in 1944 in direct response to the need for delinquency services in Granite City. The Alternative Educational Program (AEP) was started in 1973 to serve students who have a demonstrated lack of success in traditional school programs.
Over a period of 10 weeks, students attending AEP’s junior high and high school focused their photographic efforts on Granite City’s historic but neglected downtown. Our weekly trips to photograph the streets, buildings and people of Granite City join the ongoing efforts by local government and business leaders to jumpstart a downtown revitalization. The images they collected will be on exhibit at the PPRC Photography Project Gallery on the UMSL campus, and in City Hall in Granite City, Illinois.
Also Recently in the PPRC Gallery:
Point-of-View: Cherokee Street and Benton Park West Neighborhood
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The current exhibition in the PPRC Point-of-View series takes a multi-pronged approach to community photography. The Cherokee Street and Benton Park West Neighborhood Photography Project brings together youth ages 8 to 17, as well as parents and business owners who live and work in the neighborhood.
During the project, artist Lyndsey Scott, taught photography basics to a core group of young people. She met with them weekly at Community Arts and Media Program (C.A.M.P), on the west end of Cherokee Street. A second component of the project engaged adults in the area. During neighborhood walks, youth from C.A.M.P. gave disposable cameras to residents and business owners and also passed along their own recently-gained knowledge of photography. A website has been established (cherokeestreetphotos.org) participants can both view and upload Project photos.
The images they collected will be on exhibit at the PPRC Photography Project Gallery on the UMSL campus, at the Cherokee Small Business Incubator, and also in storefront windows on West Cherokee Street.
Details:
PPRC Photography Project Gallery, September 16 – October 26, 2008
(South hall, third floor, Social Science/Business Building at UMSL)
Info. 314-516-5250 • Website: http://pprc.umsl.edu
Gallery hours: daily 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Opening Reception: September 16th, noon to 1 p.m.
Featuring gallery talks with Photography Project Director Mel Watkin, instructor Lyndsey Scott, and Jean Durel of the Incarnate Word Foundation
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Cherokee Business Incubator: October 25, 2008 – January 10, 2009
2715 Cherokee Street, St. Louis, 63118
Opening Reception: Saturday, October 25 12:00 1-3 p.m.
Partners:
Public Policy Research Center at UMSL--Photography Project
Incarnate Word Foundation
Cherokee Station Business District Association
C.A.M.P (Community Arts and Media Program
Recently in the PPRC Photography Project Gallery:
Point-of-View: Center for Survivors of Torture and War Trauma
This PPRC Point-of-View exhibit features the photography of several teenage boys from a variety of countries who participate in programs through the Center for Survivors of Torture and War Trauma. CSTWT was started in the early 1990s when St. Louis therapists began to see an increase in refugees suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. An informal coalition of service providers formed to work with clients from Afghanistan, Bosnia, Congo, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Liberia, Vietnam, and other countries experiencing unrest.
Details:
PPRC Photography Project Gallery
University
of Missouri - St. Louis
(South hall, third floor, Social Science/Business Building at UMSL)
Exhibit runs November 4, 2008 – January 18, 2009
Gallery hours: daily 6 a.m. to 11p.m.
Opening Reception: November 4th, noon to 1 p.m.
Reception will feature gallery talks with Photography Project director, Mel Watkin, Photography Project instructor, Chinyere E. Oteh and Center for Survivors Youth Director, Anne Farina
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MoKaBe’s
3606 Arsenal Street, Saint Louis, 63116 • Info: (314) 865-2009
Exhibit runs November 18 – December 30, 2008
Hours: Monday – Saturday 8 a.m. – 12 a.m., Sundays 9 a.m. – 12 a.m.
Opening Reception: November 18th, 5:30 to 7 p.m.
Gallery talks with Photography Project director, Mel Watkin, Photography Project instructor, Chinyere E. Oteh and Center for Survivors Youth Director, Anne Farina
PPRC Photography Project featured in story in St. Louis American
The Point-of-View: Center for Survivors of Torture and War Trauma, was recently featured in a news article. Titled "Self-Portraits of Proud Refugees", the story highlghted several of the photos from the exhibit. »Download the web version of the story here.