Students from Inua Mimi Rescue Centre (IMRC), in partnership with Photo Start, recently held a Student Photography Exhibition dubbed ‘Kibera Kids: A.I. – See the Future,’. The exhibition ran from 22nd – 26th July 2019, at Alliance Française, Nairobi, in the central business district. Alliance Française, Nairobi, which has been a good friend and partner to Photo Start, graciously donated the venue for the exhibition.

The main feature of the exhibition was images from our students that had been processed using Skylum Luminar Artificial Intelligence Software . This allows us to, ‘see the future’ through the eyes of our students, and through the lens of technology. The students whose work is featured had been taking photography classes for three years, and the evidence of their progress was in the quality of the images they produced. The students’ work was and is still on sale. Proceeds from these sales go towards the running of Inua Mimi Rescue Centre. Please contact us for a gallery of photos and details on how to make a purchase.

The opening reception was held on 23rd July, 2019 from 7:00 PM at the same venue. The reception was attended by quite a number of freelance photographers, a representative from one of the Embassies in Nairobi, a photographer from The People’s Daily newspaper, students from neighbouring campuses, as well as other members of the community. A big screen TV was strategically placed in the middle of the room showing a sequence of images and videos that the students had taken and recorded through the years.

Guests were also treated to performances by the students and local artists who had come out to support the children. The IMRC coordinator, Benson Manyunyu, who served as MC and hype man for the evening, engaged the guests to dance, and surprisingly, everyone showed us a new move on the dance floor. The students got to show off their skills to the guests as they took photos of the event.

The IMRC founder, Pascalia Nduku, gave a heartwarming speech as she shared her love for the kids and what motivates her to keep doing what she is doing. The director of Photo Start, David Lehman, also said a few words and gave a vote of thanks to the students, guests, and the Photo Start team. The evening was concluded with the students receiving certificates of accomplishment from the Photo Start Kenya organization. To celebrate this milestone, there was lots of celebratory cake for all. The entire event was streamed live on Facebook to help those who couldn’t make it feel included, and also ensure everyone got to see the great work that these students had done.

It is our hope and prayer that with the support of our friends and partners, we will hold such events for all our partner programs every year. Not only does this help boost the morale of the students, it also gives us an opportunity to share the children’s work with the world and in the process expose them to opportunities that they otherwise would not have access to.

Reach out to us and learn how you can support our cause by sponsoring an exhibition for one of our programs.