“This Space I Live in”

In the project Este Espaço Que Habito, the Photographic Expression Movement worked with young people fulfilling a protective measure of internment*, being carried out in 6 Educational Centers in the country: at the Centro Educativo da Bela Vista and Navarro de Paiva, both in Lisbon, at the Centro Educativo Santo António in Porto, at the Centro Educativo de Santa Clara in Vila do Conde, at the Centro Educativo Padre António Oliveira in Caxias and at the Centro Educativo dos Olivais in Coimbra, using the resource of stenopeic photography as a technical and personal expression tool.
The aim of this project was to work on self-knowledge and social skills through photography, where the young participants in the project started by building their own darkrooms, also known as pinhole cameras, and chose the locations to photograph from the spaces where the project was being developed, either inside the unit or outside depending on the young people, then they revealed, edited and finally reflected on the work developed in a manufactured notebook.
*The internment measure aims to provide the young person, through temporary removal from their usual environment and the use of pedagogical programs and methods, to internalize values in accordance with the law and to acquire resources that allow them, in the future, to conduct their own life in a socially and legally responsible way.

MEF - Photographic Expression Movement

MEF is a non-profit association that has worked for around 20 years in the area of image, with particular emphasis on photography, aiming to promote a taste for photography among the general public.
It is involved in seeking partnerships with institutions and associations in the area of social dynamism in order to offer training to audiences whose access to educational opportunities may be compromised, such as people with visual, motor or mental disabilities or social and/or social or economically deprived.
MEF also facilitates workshops and gatherings with other photographers and, in its training activities, seeks to create conditions so that, in an inclusive and supportive context, dialogues are established, critical thinking is generated, and there is a constructive sharing of photographic experience.
We also seek to serve as a support platform for its members to develop skills in the field of photography and to take advantage of opportunities to exhibit and publicize their work.
Through its initiatives, MEF aims to ensure that all citizens have the same opportunities to use photography, democratizing its access and enhancing its value as a creative tool.