Brimbank’s cultural diversity and community spirit will be on show at Sunshine library for the next two weeks through a photography exhibit.
Launched on Harmony Day, the Diversity Through the Lens exhibition showcases 12 rookie photographers from diverse backgrounds sharing their experiences of Brimbank’s cultural diversity and harmony.
Project co-ordinator Nicole Attard said the program behind the exhibit – organised by Jesuit Social Services – was an important way for newly arrived Brimbank residents to get to know their community and develop new skills.
“The participants were from very diverse backgrounds, including refugees and asylum seekers from Pakistan, Burma, Malaysia, Eritrea and South Sudan,” she said.
“They all had no experience with a digital SLR camera, so we had three weeks of workshops at the VISY Cares Hub in Sunshine.
“Then they went out to explore the local area, which had its challenges … asking locals and businesses if they could photograph them and explaining the project.
“It was good to see them overcome their language difficulties to put this together.”
Ms Attard said that while the exhibition itself was a wonderful display for the community to enjoy, the benefits of being involved for the participants would also have a long-lasting effect.
“From a social aspect, the feedback was it was a great opportunity to build relationships and friendships with people from countries they may have known little about,” Ms Attard said.
“Cross-cultural relationships building and opening up ideas about future career paths was really important.”
