Earlier this year, the American International School Chennai invited us to be part of the 25th Year celebrations, a mela on the grounds that would attract the AISC community of students, teachers, staff, parents and partners! CPB was to organize a series of workshops with photo enthusiasts of their community that would culminate in a photography exhibition on campus for all to enjoy. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, things took a dramatic turn in the end of February.
Flourishing with Photography through the Pandemic
Exhibition Note
We celebrate AISC’s 25th year at a time when most of us face challenges we couldn’t have foreseen, and we couldn’t be prouder of the passionate artists and educators who’ve come together to document this time in their own unique way.
Our initial theme, ‘Flourishing in Chennai’, emerged out of all of us acknowledging the depth of our ties to the city of Chennai – a place that most of us either grew up in or adopted as our new home!
While things changed rapidly following our first meeting, every Zoom meeting and WhatsApp call that followed only further uncovered the various ways each of us adapted to our respective spaces and locations.
This year has been strange and often daunting for each of us, and we’re thrilled to bring forward an exhibition that not only celebrates the simple joys and beauty we’ve been able to find at home, but also provides small glimpses into each of our lives to help us relate to each other.
Participating photographers:
Altan Oncul | Aydan Oncul | Eda Deriner | Eunha Kim | Jodie Sovak | Kavan Arora | Kob Hirano | Nandita George | Sangjun Lee | Sean Sovak | Sonia David | Srivatsan Ramaswamy | Sujeeth Kumar | Varna Ramaswamy
Check out the exhibition here
In addition, we were also happy to participate in the Virtual Mela with 2 Virtual “booths” for students. For Elementary school we had short activity that required the students to put together a Mural in their house using objects that are in the house, like the “oldest thing in your house” or “the most important thing in your house”. Students found these objects, organised them in various ways and shot them in different angles. .
For the middle school students (and older participants!) we organized a Quiz based on photography.
On behalf of the American International School Chennai, thank you for being a part of our 25th Anniversary Celebration! From the Flourishing with Chennai Photography Exhibition to the live sessions with our community, it’s been a great way for us to engage with the city.
Soyeon Lee Director of Advancement | AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL CHENNAI
We look forward to seeing where our partnership will lead and we thank you again for celebrating with us.