Playtography!
Playtography is an exciting arts enrichment program that was developed for the patients at Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Hartford, CT. Inspired by my other endeavor- Playtivity, the concept is simple: put a digital camera in the hands of a child and give them the opportunity to see their world come alive. Equipped with the camera and their natural sense of wonder, participants are invited to join Craig Norton for an adventure in photography. The children explore their surroundings and use photography as a fun and easy tool to be creative. Within the hospital walls, teddy bears, caregivers, family members, architecture, fish tanks, sculpture and more take on a whole new perspective.
Participants will learn about digital cameras and photographic techniques as they go, but this is not a class- it's an expressive arts PLAYSHOP. The first child to participate in the program asked to do it again the following week. When we got together the next time he said, "I'm looking at things differently now." That's what Playtography is all about!
Playtography arts enrichment programs can be applied to schools, camps, social service programs and nursing homes. We will work with you to develop an integrated program that is appropriate for just about any setting. Here's just a few potential applications:
~ Use photojournalism to build
cultural bridges for students and their community through themed assignments
that involve observing community life. This could be in collaboration with
neighborhood social service organizations, nursing homes, police departments,
etc.
~ Use self portraiture and
poetry to explore self image and boost self esteem.
~ Create a project that
involves observing and chronicling the natural environment of a local ecosystem.
~ Utilize students skills to
create a wide variety of expressive art projects which could include: community
art galleries, photo montage or murals, photo journals, Power Point
presentations, international exchange, web sites.
~ Work in partnership with
existing curriculum to utilize photography skills to enhance projects in
language and visual arts, physics or general sciences, math and social studies.
~ Collaborate with
local art museum or gallery to create an exhibit of student work.
~ Collaborate with
local newspaper to publish students work.
~ Allow students to
choose specific projects or applications.
© Craig Norton Photography. All rights reserved.
