Women Are Heroes

"Women are Heroes" is the latest project of one of my favorite artists, a French photographer by the name of JR. He took photos of women in Kenya, Southern Sudan, Liberia, and Sierra Leone and asked them to tell their stories. While many of these women live in hopeless situations, he asks them to make goofy faces at the camera, which sparks some life into the women and the photographs. "The expressiveness of their faces testifies to their strength, their courage, and their will to fight, which keeps them going, keeps them alive." These photos are printed in giant format and posted in cities around the world. They create a sense of awareness for the struggles of women in the third world and a reminder of the integral part these women play in their communities.
This project (as well as JR's other work) is really inspiring to me because he uses a medium I love (photography) to create awareness of the needs of this world. His projects build bridges between communities and work for peace and justice. He reminds us of our own humanity and the humanity of those we are taught by the world to deny and ignore. His work gives people integrity, it gives these women a voice with which to tell the world about their experiences.
If you want to see the entire "Women Are Heroes" project and read the womens' stories, visit the following website: http://www.womenareheroes.be/
JR's other work can be found at:
"Portrait of a Generation"http://28millimetres.com
"Face2Face"http://face2faceproject.com