"These photographs are selections from the final projects of students enrolled in introductory photography courses at Rollins College during the spring semesters of 2011 and 2013, as part of Project Mosaic. Initiated by Dr. Julian Chambliss, coordinator of the African and African American Studies Program at Rollins College, Project Mosaic uses a designated central theme to bring together faculty from across campus to explore themes related to the African and African-American experience. Mosaic projects are intended to facilitate the inclusion of African and African American Studies content into participating classes by highlighting the intersection of African experience throughout western culture. The self directed nature of these projects allowed students to express and interpret thematic concerns from their own unique perspectives.
The photography projects were designed to challenge students to consider the role of photography in shaping the African-American experience in our culture. Students were encouraged to look to narratives constructed via photographic representation that influence our understanding or perception of issues surrounding self/other and race/gender/class. Emphasis was placed upon the use of various historical and contemporary periods as a framing device, as well as the incorporation of archival imagery as both a reference, or as part of the artwork itself (by re-photographing newspapers, magazines, family album images or ephemera, objects or data on computer screens, etc).
Students in the 2011 course focused specifically upon the significance of the Rollins College campus proximity to the town of Eatonville. Adjacent to Winter Park, Eatonville is an historic community that is well known for being the oldest incorporated African-American municipality in America, as well as the birthplace of writer Zora Neale Hurston. While this assignment had a predetermined subject, students were encouraged to think creatively about how they would interpret and express the theme. Their resulting photographs offer viewers a glimpse of the multi-faceted community of Eatonville and contain a range of responses." — Dawn Roe, Course Instructor
To view more work from the Project Mosaic: Eatonville, please visit this website.
Editor's Note: While a majority of the work found in One, One Thousand has been created by photographers no longer enrolled in undergraduate programs, we'd like to reiterate that our guidelines encourage submissions from photographers of all ages and skill levels.
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