Project Safety On

I have this vision for a new photography project! Through this project, I want to bring to light a topic I'm very passionate about that gets brushed over too often: depression. We are constantly surrounded by family, friends, coworkers, and classmates who are struggling with depression and other related problems like anxiety and eating disorders. It's a devastating yet overlooked reality, but raising awareness about it helps unite us to fight through these struggles together. Speaking from experience, people who struggle with depression often feel like they are alone in this fight. With this project, I want to be a help for people who are currently struggling from people who have been there.

My vision came from a dream I had after seeing a fellow photographer's shoot with the theme: love has no shape or size. The morning after I had this dream, the song on my alarm was "Guns for Hands" by Twenty One Pilots. Basically the song is saying you have the power to end your life, BUT you also have the power to redirect negativity into something positive and make good come from it.  A few months went by and I was still tossing around the idea for the shoot. Then I heard a sermon at church from my former youth pastor Aaron Sanders about mental health, and young woman shared her testimony about personal struggles with depression. In that moment it became overwhelming clear that I needed to do something to reach out to others like her who often struggle alone.

Back to the dream. I was in a blank studio. One wall was covered with windows, and another wall was a white brick wall. There was an alcove where several people were gathered near one one person who was writing their stories on different pieces of cardboard. Then one at a time, I took two pictures of each person with their board. For the first picture, everything was dull and dark. The sign for this one was their turning point for when they realized they were in too deep. For the second picture everything was bright and fun and full of life. The sign for this one was with a quote, phrase, or verse of what they wished someone had said, something that helps them now, or advice they would give to someone currently struggling. For both pictures they were holding a sign with either a quote, phrase, or verse of either what they wished someone had said, something that helps them now or advice they would give to someone currently struggling.

If you or anyone you know would like to participate in this project with me, please email me at hello@ribbonsandpearls.net or message me on Facebook! I cannot wait to see what all this brings!

-Hugs