Save the Arts Brief for the College One Show

KEY INSIGHTA picture means more than “snap” shot; it captures life.

Is Your Life Too Easy To Delete?

Business Problem: Increase trial of digital and film photography among “curious” American teenagers.

Opportunity: Empower youth, with the help of the Hillman Photography Initiative, to contact their administrators and push for photography classes to be added to curriculum in order to teach photography techniques, from camera etiquette to darkroom practices, while moving from the age of smartphones.

Audience: “Curious” students, who are looking to enhance their broad knowledge of the world by working with arts in a hands on setting. These students are more willing to participate in art classes and take a subject that would normally seem more daunting, just for the experience. They are typically teenagers, who attend classes at their

local Junior High or High School on a daily basis. They live in a screen culture of instant gratification, where they always want to consume the simplest medium. The difference between these teens and others is that they want action. They believe that they can truly make a difference in the world, and will fight for what they believe is right.

Background: More than ever, teens are engaging in a multitasking, digital landscape. Instead of taking photos on real cameras, both digital and film, teens today take photos on their cell phones and instantly update their friends with images on social media that in no way enhance their daily life story. This has helped Snapchat grow into a huge, controversial enterprise that engages America’s youth. Instagram and Twitter are also growing as photo platforms. Teens aren’t consciously thinking about the pictures they are taking; they are simply acting without putting any creativity or meaning into their pictures. Photo taking has become so standardized among teens that the images of their lives tell no

coherent story and hold no greater meaning. Is that the way teens want to be remembered?

A true photo is about capturing a moment. It is about showing the pure emotion around a scene. This emotion, and the discovery of beautiful moments through the lens, is at risk as our society continues to allow “snapchat” and “instagram” selfies without teaching youth of the wonders of pure photography. Do we really live in a world where the “selfie” has become an acceptable form of photography? Alongside the Hillman Photography Initiative, which works to enliven individuals around photography in the digital age, we can make the art of photography relevant on the minds of youth.

Tension to describe why this is interesting: Snapchat and Instagram have become ingrained in our culture. With the near universal adoption of Smartphones in the United States, it is easier than ever to snap a quick photo and upload it to the internet for the world to see. With the ease of use of camera phones in our “always on” culture, it is becoming harder and harder to show youth the true value of an action shot over a selfie, or a panorama of a skyline over a “kissyface in front of the Statue of Liberty”. Teens

snap any number of photos just to snap photos. It is quantity over quality, with millions of selfies trumping documents of passions.

What has been lost in today’s culture is the idea of Photography building moments that last in our minds. Without learning the methods of true photography, what moment will our culture remember? Youth need to learn

about the value of the camera not just for their personal enjoyment, but to document a better world: a world where there is a greater meaning behind the push of a button, passion behind all convictions and a brilliant story waiting to be told.

What will get talk value or buzz?: Photography snaps a beautiful moment and makes it timeless. Photos tell a story that can never be forgotten or disputed. Photography is quite possibly the most powerful medium of expression because it captures the raw emotion of a scene that writing cannot, showcase real actors that drawings cannot, and encourage pure memories. Photography allows your mind to run wild while you snap the finest memories in order to document the great moments of your life.

The Work

The Work

The Work

The Work

The Work