How I See It — My Place
Antioch
Front row: Lynn House Gallery, Antioch; opening reception: Kendall Clinton, Elizabeth Brannon; Middle row: Kathy Middleton, Project Director; Katrina Miller, Filip Hess, Jacob Emery, Courtney Diputado, Assistant Project Director; Back row: Kandace Haith, Jacob Rodriguez, Nicholas Kraber. Not pictured: Hannah Bartlebaugh and Angelica Pereda-Garcia
Clockwise: Kendall, Angelica, Nicholas and Jacob test the cameras at our first meeting, September 8.
Filip takes a few notes
Inside time for camera and computer instruction
Nicholas, Hannah, Kandace, Angelica and Kendall go east on 18th Street in Antioch
Part of the group at the Antioch Library opening reception—Nicholas, Katrina, Kendall, Kandice, Hannah
Director Kathy Middleton and Asst. Director Courtney Diputado prepare for the opening reception, November 8.
Behind the Scenes
Situated in an older neighborhood, Antioch Library is just a walk across the street from two schools: Antioch Middle School and Antioch High School. Together the schools have a student population of approximately 3,750. Small businesses, homes, churches and railroad tracks encompass the quarter-mile radius of the library. Antioch Library was built in the 1960s for a population of 25,000, but today the city’s population is more than 100,000. In addition, Antioch has the highest teen population in the entire county of Contra Costa.
A group of teens and two library staff headed out on Tuesday afternoons beginning September 9, 2008 to explore the neighborhood around the library. Each week we set off in a different direction to explore the region: the Antioch Middle School grounds, strip malls, railroad tracks, small retail shops and restaurants, houses, overpasses, back streets and alleys.
On week one our group heard from Charles Bohakel, a local historian and instructor visiting from Los Medanos College. He spoke to us about the history of Antioch and the surrounding areas, including the first inhabitants, the Bay Miwok and in 1850, the settlers who arrived in present day Antioch, California. Historical information laid the groundwork for understanding the beginnings of our city.
The following week we hit the streets taking in as much as we could in one hour’s time. At first, we took in the big picture, noticing the broad views, taking long shots of areas beyond our immediate space. The following week we were again privileged to hear from a Los Medanos College professor, Curtis Corlew, an experienced and talented photojournalist. His lesson on, “Everything I know about photography,” placed us quite literally on the ground experimenting with Corlew’s first tenet: “Get closer. Then get closer.” Stepping in closer to our subjects proved to be the impetus for our exhibit, “Notice the Unnoticed.” We stopped often to investigate incidences of serendipity, palimpsest, mystery or transformation, taking in especially the quirky and peculiar—for example, the discovery of a discarded doll on a bed of dry grass bearing a shirt labeled, “Hot Stuff” and the mundane-turned-privileged “Grocery Outlet” sign rising from the earth against a blue sky. These and other things unnoticed comprised our collective thoughts and photographic visions.
Elizabeth gets closer
By the next week, we had critiqued professional photographs, compared them with our own, and shared our ideas. Time after time our group honed in on the unnoticed aspects of our library neighborhood. Each participant in this project at one time or another voiced his or her opinion on the unnoticed aspects of our city. When it came time to vote on the exhibit’s title there was no dissent on the selection of “Notice the Unnoticed.”
A group of teens with cameras wandering the streets of Antioch turned a lot of heads. We got stares from police officers on patrol, shop owners who stepped out to look, other neighborhood teens, and passersby hanging out of car windows, and the curious who were simply waiting on a bus. Observers who asked got the reply, “We’re working on a photography project.” Most answered, “Cool,” or “A library doing photography, huh”? And, it really was a cool expedition that we all enjoyed.
Katrina, Hannah, (Filip pictured behind) and Angelica set out to explore the west side of the neighborhood
After weeks of taking hundreds of photos and emptying our flash drives into the appropriate folders, the curatorial work began. To help us through the selection process we invited Zachary Williams, a professional artist, who took the time to review the contents of each photographer’s folder, at times suggesting that we take a second look at promising photos we had put aside.
We not only learned to notice the unnoticed in Antioch, but we learned how to take amazing photos and turn them into an exhibit to share with people in the community. Coordinating a large project with a deadline proved challenging because we felt we needed more time to get ready, but with cooperation, support and friendship each one contributed what was required to pull it off: 54 framed photos with exhibit labels, an exhibit binder, the exhibit statement, formatted biographies and bio photos, invitations, a printed program and finally, a freshly scrubbed exhibit space in our library meeting room.
Friends, family, and other visitors enjoyed “Notice the Unnoticed,” and we heard positive comments about the creative or funny titles on each photo and the uniqueness of each one. At the opening reception each photographer had the opportunity to explain his or her photos to anyone who asked.
I have to agree with a person’s comment at the opening reception, after hearing the teens speak about their ten week experience, “Libraries really do change peoples’ lives.”
— Kathy Middleton, Project Director
