Contact Nancy to discuss your project ideas
E-mail: ngh@hortonphoto.com
Phone: 603-431-5923 |
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Learning to See: BLOG |
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Recent Press |
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Recent 2009 Camera Donations
Thank You's go to:
Jane Tyska, photographer
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Nancy Grace Horton's Learning to See programs are community
participatory projects that simultaneously teach the
art of photography and document local events, traditions,
and neighborhoods. Learning To See programs take place
over several days, include from a dozen to hundreds
of students, and involve participants in learning new
skills, exploring their environments, and appreciating
their culture. During the programs, individual participants
gain new artistic skills as they learn to look at their
world through the lens of a camera. When viewed as a
whole, the combined images become a photographic record
of a community's environment and culture that is discussed
by the participants and displayed to the public in exhibits
and books. Learning to See projects have been conducted
since 2001 both locally, ( Spotlight
-Capturing Sights of Interest/Profile, Herald
-Portsmouth Middle School Kids Get the Picture) as well
as internationally, (Recent Learning to See project
in Mexico,Banderas
News.). |
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Learning to See projects begin with the teaching of
photographic techniques, then involve students in capturing,
discussing and displaying their images. With simple
instruction, the students only need encouragement to
explore their own ideas and to be confident in approaching
their subjects. Each student (typically young people
and seniors) employs their new skills to explore and
engage with their environment. Using a camera opens
doors and opens one's eyes to people and places and
gives the student license to explore their curiosity.
As they document their interests, a unique and valuable
record emerges of their families, their communities,
and their culture. |
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Some Learning to See projects include collaborations
with other artists and organizations, and the result
is that educational institutions, local businesses,
and other artists join the budding photographers to
create multidisciplinary pieces and events to tell the
important stories of a community. For instance, in a
recent Learning to See project in rural Mexico, the
child photographers -- none of whom had ever used a
camera or studied English before -- employed their photos
to learn English words by labeling and discussing their
subjects with their school teacher and local adult volunteers.
This project became the foundation for volunteer-led
English classes at the elementary school. |
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Learning to See projects include four distinct stages:
introduction to photography, taking pictures, editing,
and presentation. While the actual schedule and scope
of a project varies according to each project's goals
and collaborators, a typical project devotes one day
to each stage:
Session One To begin, students learn about
the art of photography and the use of the camera. Students
look at a variety of images, from famous historic photographs
to images made in local newspapers. They use these images
to observe perspective, composition and discuss the
message of the image. Having the students bring in their
favorite visuals is also encouraged. Then students are
instructed on the function of the camera, and how to
use it to achieve different effects and results.
Session Two In the second
stage, students go out into their environment and shoot
what interests them: their families, their neighborhood,
their cultural activites. The emphasis at this stage
is on exploring students' personal visions, and gaining
some insight into what draws them to the images they
make. Students may be assigned particular technical
exercises, such as to use their images to study framing
and point of view, or they may have more general goals,
such as to document their neighborhoods or local cultural
events.
Session Three With all their
images developed or printed out and gathered together,
students now jointly review and critique their work,
learning more about what makes an interesting photograph.
Discussing the pictures engages students both visually
and verbally, as they study their images' merits and
themes. Depending on the project, specific assignments
are given and further sessions include critiquing the
images, discussing intentions behind their images, and
how successful they feel they were. Writing about their
images then becomes an additional way of using visual
art to help verbal communication. Students are made
aware that in art there is no right or wrong. All efforts
are a stepping stone to further exploration.
Session Four The final stage involves public
display: sometimes an exhibit, sometimes a printed book,
sometimes a collaborative presentation with other educators
or artists. This stage has two goals. First it allows
students to take pride in their work and experience
the reaction of others to it. Secondly, when viewed
as a whole the project often makes a statement about
a neighborhood, event or culture. Very often this stage
involves a writing component: either writing captions
as to the who, what, where, why, when of the images,
or using the images as the basis for creative prose
and poetry. |
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Learning To See programs require each student to use
a camera, but expensive technology is not necessary.
Past programs have used the student's own cameras, or
have provided them with inexpensive digital or film
cameras. In one recent project, grant funding provided
eighty inexpensive digital cameras that were retained
by the students' school after the project, and have
since been used by many other students for a wide range
of work.
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Learning To See projects are funded through grants and
donations. Recent supporters include Piscataqua Bank,
The Rotary Club of Portsmouth, the Clark Family Foundation,
New Hampshire State Council on the Arts and the Cultural Commission. Learning
To See projects are eligible for funding through New
Hampshire State Arts Council grant programs. |
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Please consider a donation!
All Support is Appreciated and goes toward
the present needs: (donating digital cameras welcome)
Sponsorship at $100
purchases one digital camera
Sponsorship at $250
purchases one portable printer
Sponsorship at $1500
funds an entire program
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Nancy Grace Horton began conducting her Learning To
See programs in 2001. She is a freelance editorial and
fine art photographer and educator. She does commissioned
works and teaches in communities and colleges as an
artist-in-residence. Ms. Horton is a member of the juried
New
Hampshire Artist Roster. She says, "As the
director of these projects, I enjoy giving people the
opportunity to use a camera as a means of appreciating
their surroundings, and becoming aware of what is important
to them. It is a pleasure to have students gain confidence
and experience by working individually to contribute
to the project as a whole. And when all the project's
images are combined into a final presentation, it is
a thrill to see students take pride in their project
and the community they have studied." |
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