User:Phenophexadin/Hope in shadows

Hope in Shadows is a project based around a photography contest for residents of Vancouver's impoverished Downtown Eastside. Each year Downtown Eastside residents are provided with disposable cameras and asked to portray their neighbourhood from their own perspective. A selection of the contest's best images are featured in the annual Hope in Shadows calendar, which residents sell for a profit.

Photography Contest
Started in 2003 by Pivot Legal Society, the annual photography contest is an opportunity for Downtown Eastside residents to portray their neighbourhood through their own eyes and participate in the ongoing dialogue about their community.

The contest is open to low-income, Downtown Eastside residents and it's free to participate. Camera hand-out day is always abuzz. Hundreds of people line-up outside a local gallery to receive a free, single-use camera.

The images generated in the contest go beyond the usual stereotypes, telling the story of spirit, courage and compassion that reflects the true essence of this unique community.

Contestants are asked to document their daily lives, their friends and family, moments of joy or courage or struggle.

Participants have three days to take their photos before returning the camera. Along with $5 they get for returning the camera, they also get a set of their valued prints once they are developed.

Selection of Top Images
A panel of judges deliberates for hours to choose the top 40 photos from the thousands submitted. Everything from artistic merit to technical quality to emotional impact is considered.

Once the top 40 images are selected, the winning photographers and subjects are contacted and invited to talk about their photo and share their personal stories. These stories are used to create captions for the calendar and exhibit.

Next comes community voting where the top 40 images are viewed and voted on by people in the neighbourhood. This year, the vote took place on the street outside Carnegie Community Centre. Our mobile display was also attached to a cart and wheeled around the neighbourhood allowing more than 1,000 people to view the photos and vote for their favourite three.

Award Ceremony and Exhibition
It's October when the much anticipated awards ceremony unrolls. The winners are selected based on the community vote. The first place winner get $500 and multiple second and third place winners receive cash prizes, as do all participants who reach the top 40. Everyone gets an enlargement of their photo.

On the same day, the Hope in Shadows exhibit opens at a downtown gallery. Throughout the year there are several exhibits in the Lower Mainland.

Calendar and Book
Each year, a selection of the contest's best images is featured in the Hope in Shadows calendar. The 2010 calendar will be launched on October 13.

A collection of personal stories behind some of the stunning contest photographs was co-published by Pivot Legal Society and Arsenal Pulp Press in 2008. The personal narratives in this award-winning book are candid and moving and will challenge the way individuals think about poverty, mental health and drug addiction. Hope in Shadows: Stories and Photographs of Vancouver's Downtown Eastside has been widely recognized winning the City of Vancouver Book Award and nominated for one of the prestigious BC Book Prizes, Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize.

Street Vendor Program
Established to create accessible employment opportunities for people impacted by poverty and marginalization, the vendor program has become one of the project's biggest successes.

Both the calendar and book are sold by street vendors who earn a $10 profit for every $20 calendar or book sold. Every year individuals who successfully sell the calendar achieve personal goals, such as earning enough money to upgrade their living situation, getting off income assistance or making a trip home to visit family. Participants in the project tell us that it builds their self-esteem and helps them gain new skills. Last year, street vendors earned more than $130,000 for themselves selling the Hope in Shadows calendar and award-winning book.