Taking Action Through Art

There’s an unfortunate reality in certain countries around the world where women don’t have access to education or freedom of speech, let alone the opportunity to express themselves through art. The moment they speak up, they and their families are subjected to death threats, finding no choice but to flee to a country where they can live without fear. They leave with few belongings, oftentimes just the clothing on their back, and arrive at overcrowded refugee camps looking for protection. After months or years there, and if they feel strong and capable enough to start a new life elsewhere, do they leave.  

According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, by the end of 2021, at least 83.9 million people were forced to flee their homes, amongst them, 27.1 million refugees and 4.6 asylum seekers. One refugee camp in Greece called Thessaloniki is known to the Greeks as the “Mother of Migration” for being a centuries-old refugee camp. Today, Thessaloniki houses people from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Turkey, South Asia and Africa. According to Refugees In Town – a project based at the Institute for Migration and Human Society at Tufts University, of the 115,600 refugees in Greece, 16,000 are in Thessaloniki and its surrounding area. 

Besides providing refugees with food, clothes and proper hygiene supplies, camps seek to help its residents overcome trauma. In 2020, Thessaloniki created a photography school for young girls fleeing conflicts from Afghanistan, Syria and Iran. “The program started to help the girls develop creative skills and process their trauma,” says Federica Donato, a visual artist and activist and president of the Art 4 Humanity Foundation, a Miami-based nonprofit organization grounded on the belief that art is the most potent form of activism. “The impact of the training in photography went beyond the initial purpose as the girls could acquire awareness and professional skills, reclaim their voices, and reinstate their identities.”

Donato explains that these girls were not even allowed to take photos in their countries, and after crossing the borders on foot and leaving their homes and family behind, they needed something to boost up morale. Since its inception, over 50 students have enrolled in the school. “At the beginning, the girls attended the training as a tool to survive misery, anxiety, isolation, and hardship,” says Donato. “Their laudable work has received critical acclaim, including the 2021 Global Peace Photo Award.”

One year ago, the Art 4 Humanity Foundation (which has supported The Photography School since the beginning), started working with the fashion brand Vionnet on its One World Show (OWS) project. This initiative demonstrates how artists, world leaders and corporations can come together to elevate human dignity, empower others and make meaningful changes.

“For the girls, working on the OWS was an honor and an exciting challenge that added purpose to their life and leveraged their capabilities as photographers,” says Donato.

On March 11, the foundation is presenting a fashion and photography show at the Instituto Marangoni in Miami featuring outfits from the Vionnet archive and a display of photographs taken by the refugees wearing them. “By wearing the prestigious Vionnet outfits, the young women have put together an outstanding photoshoot in the surroundings of their refugee camp in Thessaloniki, Greece. For the first time, young female refugees simultaneously worked as models, photographers, artistic directors, and makeup artists,” notes the press release for the event.

“We felt the urge to break the silence, tell their stories, and amplify their voices involving a historic brand like Vionnet,” says Donato, 45. “Their photographs depict a humiliated humanity and, nonetheless, the hope and potential of healing it. And with OWS, we take their stories beyond the walls of the refugee camp, let them breathe, and set them free through their art. We are thrilled to allow refugees to move beyond the confines of the silence they are pushed in. When human beings are silenced, they are dehumanized.”

Photography is a captivating form of activism, as images speak more than a thousand words. “Throughout an unspoken performance, we communicate the narrative of a successful project: how beauty can save the world. There’s beauty in taking care of these young women. The beauty of teaching, educating, and making space for them in our society,” says Donato.

The show's main objective is to engage the audience through a captivating approach to a complex subject. “We like to be disruptive. We want to generate awareness about critical issues through entertainment and trigger actions,” says Donato. “We brought the haute couture outfits – previously worn during the prestigious catwalks of fashion weeks – to the emptiness of a refugee camp. And then, we went from the nothingness of the refugee center to the glamorous Miami Design District.”

And it’s no coincidence that the show is scheduled for March, Women’s History Month. “Vionnet was a revolutionary designer and businesswoman. She set out to create the best possible working conditions for her employees. Being a female designer set her apart from the largely male-dominated field of design and led to a very different way of thinking (for the better). And having such a collaboration is a way to celebrate what Madeleine Vionnet has done in the fashion world from the beginning of the 20th century and, at the same time, empower young women to look for a new future and new opportunities in the 21st century.”

The photographs and outfits will be available for purchase during the show with proceeds benefiting the training programs of The Photography School and its students.

“Change is in our hands. What is our humanity’s future if we don’t take care of it today?” says Donato.

For more information, visit eventbrite.com.