Self Portrait of a Nation
Ojos Propios
Ojos Propios can be translated as “Through Their Own Eyes”
HISTORY
The photographs displayed on the walls of the International Affairs Building at Columbia University were taken by Peruvians from a variety of origins and ages but made possible by the vision of a particular artist. Andrés Longhi has been for years a tireless advocate of “photography by and of the people.”
He has provided cameras and instruction on the technical and artistic components of photography to children and adults in rural communities and poor neighborhoods across the country so they can document their experiences through their own eyes to create the "Self Portrait of a Nation".
Self Portrait of a Nation
MISSION
The aim of the project is finding images of the daily life of families and the quotidian activities undertaken in their intimate environment. We look at each image showing a small family history, which together with others with the same level of registration, generate a series of photographs that tell the story of organized social groups and with them the great national stories.
From this concept and to give sustainability to the Ojos Propios, we have created the “Self Portrait of a Nation” project as a collection of photographs to generate a bank of images made by Peruvian people, telling their own life stories, in each region of the country.
Small family stories will tell the great history of nations
SUSAN SONTAG
Photography…like language, is a
medium in which works of art…are made.”
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The Protagonists of their own stories
DISCLAIMER
These images will be for general and free use.
They constitute an important tool for the promotion of the nation, its history, customs, culture, environment, especially to reinforce identity.
We follow an innovative educational process to deliver to the people- the protagonists of their own stories- an alternative and inclusive tool of communication that dispenses with language, The Image.
The method is to use photography and images to generate a collectie memory and use it to find the emotions that mobilize and generate processes of life in a harmonious, cohesive and inclusive society.