Education - Through a Child's Eyes

Education - Through a Child's Eyes

Ever looked at that old tore down building and thought of it as a great piece of art? Truth is, everything is art. The children in the documentary: Born Into Brothels, took photographs of their environment. As torn down, filthy and disoriented everything seemed, the children turned their own environment into works of art with the help of Zana Briski, an American woman who came to this part of India called The Brothels, specifically the red light district, to learn the life of these people and teach the children bound for a life of struggle, that there is something bigger and better outside of this environment and to show them something that will hopefully give their lives more meaning; art and photography. 
Art is a non-avoidable object in everyone’s life. Art gives purpose to the things that wouldn’t have meaning otherwise. Art in my own life plays the role of music and scenery. Music is a big part of my everyday life and it brings a sense of peace to a hectic day. On GVSU’s campus, it is fall time now and the leaves are so beautiful from bright orange to deep reds. I call this art because it makes me calm when I look at the scenery and it can be easily photographed. 
In the documentary, art is something the children are learning from Briski and are applying to their everyday lives. Most of the children’s photos were of their family, buildings and the more outgoing ones got some of the town. The documentary itself was presented in a way that shows the individual lives of each of the children, allowing them to talk about their peers and how they feel living there. It fades into scenes of Calcutta’s Red Light District where their life could and most likely will go without any outside help. Quick blurbs of their family fighting and name calling shows brutality and how much the children aren’t cared about.