Activity Set Six:

1. If you had to generalize, what would the three central themes of the exhibit be? Write a few paragraphs to justify your answer.

2. Get a book about the Texas/US Border out of the library. Notice some suggested titles under Bibliographic Links listed below. Think about what images of border culture you would add to the Border Studies Exhibit if you wanted to portray other elements of the border. Write a few paragraphs to justify your suggestions.

3. Read the text "About the Exhibit" reproduced below. This text accompanies the exhibit of photographs upon which this lesson is based. List three things that you learned about the exhibit from reading this text.

1. What unifies the work of the photographer? What makes you know that each of the pictures was taken by the same person?

2. What do you find unusual or special about this person's work?

3. Out of all the photographs taken by this artist, which is your favorite photo? Explain why. Is the photo black and white or color? How does this factor enhance the message conveyed by the image?

4. Read the page of information provided on the photographer in the Artist Information section below. It will list any current publications or websites which include the person. Write a few sentences to summarize what you have learned.

5. If you had a chance to interview this photographer, what question would you ask about their life and personal background? What question you would ask about their artistic motivation or vision?

1. Find a definition for the term photojournalist. Review your local newspaper and cut out good examples of photojournalism for a scrapbook. Explain why you think they are good examples of photojournalism.

2. How do photographs function as historical documents? Examine a favorite old family snapshot and write a few paragraphs about how it is a record of family history as well as a document of how things have changed in styles or fashions. Now look at an old photograph of your city from a book or newspaper. Can you notice things that have changed? Make a list of things that you notice about the photograph which are reminders of a past time. What have you learned from the photograph?

3. Go to a camera store and find out something about these photographic materials:

1. Your job is to take a set of photographs which capture the feeling of your community. Make a list of at least five shots which you would like to take. Write a paragraph for each proposed shot, explaining why you feel it is an important aspect of your community and what message you'd like your photograph to convey.

2. Buy a disposable camera or a roll of film for a camera you already have. Decide if you want to make color or black and white prints. Film comes in rolls of 12, 24 or 36. Note that disposable cameras are usually just available with color film and have 15 or 27 exposures per roll. It is also possible to purchase a disposable camera which takes extra-wide panoramic shots. These cameras take 15 exposures to a roll.

3. Take photos of your area based on your list. Also take some free shots, of things that you just like but had not planned on photographing. Then develop the roll.

4. Once you get your prints back, write a paragraph about each. Mention how it reflects your intentions at the time you took it. Is it successful or not? What new elements have emerged in the photograph which you had not planned? Add a sentence or two about how the photograph reflects your community.

1. Collect several photographs from each of your class members. You can choose them with the help of a jury of teachers, parents and students from your school, or you could involve community members (artists, photojournalists, historians).

2. Have each of the student photographers write an artist's statement for the exhibit. You can consult the artist's statement written for "Border Studies" in the Artist Informations section below.

3. Talk to your teacher and school administration about a good and secure location and a good date for the exhibit to open. Will you have an evening opening? Do you plan to serve refreshments? How will they be paid for? Decide how long the exhibit will run.

4. Once you have confirmation on the exhibit, set up several committees to handle different aspects of the exhibit. These committees should meet together several times to coordinate their activities. These could include:

1. Design a panel discussion about your exhibit and your community with about four speakers. One could be a historian, another could be an artist, another could be a poet and another could be someone who works for your city to maintain safety and vital services (for example, a police officer, traffic engineer, sanitation worker, housing authority employee).

2. Talk to your teacher and school administration about a good date for the symposium. It should coincide with the dates of your exhibit. Find a good location for your symposium and decide how many people you want to attend and whether they will need to call in advance to reserve a place. Decide if there will be refreshments and how they will be supplied.

3. Contact your chosen speakers and confirm the date with them. Once they have consented to participate, provide them with information on the exhibit. Give them the packet of information which your publicity committee has assembled regarding the show (see section "G" below). Class members could take them on a tour of the exhibit prior to the symposium or simply be available at an earlier date to discuss their work. Tell participants what you want of them: ask them to share their thoughts about the exhibit and its representation of your community with symposium members.

4. When you attend the symposium, pay attention to what each community scholar says.

5. Write up class reports on the discussion. If the timing is right, the publicity committee could use important quotes from the community scholars in publicizing the show. The team on informational signs might want to add quotes to the exhibit signs.

6. Write letters of appreciation to all the community scholars and those who helped with the symposium.

1. Design a poster/flyer giving basic information on the exhibit: title, brief description, location of exhibit with address, inclusive dates for the exhibit. If you plan on doing a symposium you can include information such as: title, date, time, precise location, phone number for more information (including hours to call). You may wish to limit attendance. If this is the case, indicate on your poster/flyer that registration is required. Brighten up your poster/flyer with color and illustrations.

2. Get a local contact person. The person who is listed as the phone contact will be designated to take names of registrants. If this is a school employee, make sure to provide them with adequate information on the symposium and on registration procedures.

3. Contact the media. If you want your community to know about the exhibit, write up a press release. You could include all the information on the poster/flyer, plus some copies of the photographs or artist's statetements. Once your school has approved the press release packet, send a copy to your school newspaper, local newspapers and radio stations. If your class/school has a website, plan to scan in the information on your poster/flyer along with several photographic images from the exhibit. Symposium information can be posted here too.