Students from John Adams and Richmond Hill high schools last Saturday put their creativity on display for all to see at the Queens Museum of Art.
The “Crossroads Expo” was the culmination of the students’ enrollment in Photography for Art and Creative Expression, an after-school program run by the nonprofit group South Asian Youth Action.
Manauvaskar Kuball, known to most of his students as Manny, led the photography program. “I wanted to introduce kids from the community to photography as a use for creative expression and change, and for them to feel a sense of pride in their work and express their lives through their work,” he said.
A native of the neighborhoods near the two high schools, Kuball taught and discussed ideas about photography with students, and encouraged them to find their own source of inspiration for their work.
Michelle Manzano, a junior at Richmond Hill High School, showed her love for sunsets in her photograph titled “Sunset over Richmond Hill.” Jonahiry Rosario, a sophomore at Richmond Hill, showed her love for colors and her family in the photograph titled “ People I Love.”
The program also allowed students to develop an appreciation for photography and deepen their passion for the art form. “Photography is fun, it shows how you see things, depending on which angle you look at it from,” said Tarnjeet Kaur, a junior at Richmond Hill. She shared this insight in her symbolic and touching photography “My Sunshine and My Son,” whose subjects are her husband and her son.
Melinda Ramesh, a sophomore at Richmond Hill , discovered the beauty of her neighborhood in her piece, named “Cosmo Graffiti.” Ramesh hopes to take up photography as a profession.
The exhibit attracted family members and friends of the students, along with other spectators who were visiting the museum at that time. A ceremony to open the exhibit featured a performance by hip-hop artist Chee Malabar, with his words expressing the same themes as the photographs —love of family, community and culture.
6 years ago
