Latest Installation of OSF’s Annual Moving Walls Series Depicts Migrants ‘As They’d Rather Be Seen’
Many of the images we see of refugees, migrants and immigrants portray them as burdens on society or victims of oppression.
A new photo show, Another Way Home, offers a different narrative.
Curated by the Open Society Foundations, a philanthropic organization founded by George Soros, the exhibit is the latest installation of its annual Moving Walls series. The series is dedicated to social justice, and this year, the topic is migration. The show opened on September 26 at the group’s office in New York City and runs until July 2019.
The Foundation received more than 400 submissions and chose 13 photographers, artists and storytellers. Many of the winners are immigrants, migrants or refugees themselves.
“We aim to emphasize the individual acts of bravery and self-sacrifice as well as the resilience of familial and community ties that exist amidst stories of great risk and pain,” said co-curator Yukiko Yamagata in a statement.
One activist photographed a Mexican immigrant among colorful handcrafted piñatas, which she sells to support her family in Queens. A designer traveled to Italy to cast African migrants in a high-end fashion shoot. A photographer asked a refugee family in Lebanon to re-create a tough moment: serving the children grass, because there was nothing else to eat.
Each artist will receive up to $60,000 from the Foundations to continue their work. Here’s a sampling of the art and photography.