“Capture images with your heart, not with your eye.”
David Lok
Photographer & photography cikgu
Sama Sama Beautiful – KL International Art Festival 2018, PPR Sri Tioman 1
– commissioned by DiverseCity and Think City
Sama Sama Beautiful kids’ photography workshop aimed to encourage 40 children, aged between 6 to 17 years old, from the Sri Tioman People’s Housing Programme (PPR) flats, Taman Melati, to draw inspiration from the KL city centre, and to bring back that inspiration to photograph and tell stories of their home and neighbourhood.
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The photos were exhibited in the underground walkway at Masjid Jamek’s LRT station, and also at the PPR flats.
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Led by David Lok and Sok Lin of Studio DL, this workshop used photography to inspire the children beyond their preconceived ideas - by taking them out (Day 1) to explore the city centre - and then taking them back to see their neighbourhood in a new way (Day 2). This exercise gave a fresh pair of eyes to participants – and they really could see beyond the mundane in their neighbourhoods after that.
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Video and photos on this page used with the kind permission of Studio DL.
Workshop and photo exploration
DAY 1
The children and volunteers gathered in Ruang for breakfast & a photo briefing. They then ventured out to different parts of KL for their photo exploration. The 40 children & 40 volunteers were divided into 8 teams, boarded the train at Masjid Jamek LRT station and headed to different destinations in KL for photo exploration.
DAY 2
Children & volunteers met up in Sri Tioman’s Community Centre for breakfast & photo briefing. The groups then walked out to different parts of their neighbourhood in Taman Melati to explore its vicinity, armed with a fresh pair of eyes and perspectives.
Watch this video to catch a glimpse of all the beauty that the children captured!
Our young photographers’ beautiful work exhibited at Masjid Jamek LRT!
Kotaku, halamanku, rumahku. My city, my neighbourhood, my home. The children searched for beauty everywhere, and found it. Life is Sama Sama Beautiful.
‘Jangan tangkap gambar dengan mata... tapi dengan hati. Feeling tu penting!’
‘Don't take pictures with your eyes... take pictures with your heart. Feeling is important!
KEY COLLABORATORS
Client
ThinkCity
Diversecity
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Project managers
Susie Kukathas
Lee Jia Ping
Photography
The children of PPR Sri Tioman 1
Behind the scenes: Studio DL
Design
Allie Hill
Workshop & exhibition coordination
David Lok, Sok Lin and staff of Studio DL
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Special thanks to all volunteers (friends of Studio DL) and parents