Birth of Foto Friendship June 2014

In June 2014 the first Foto Friendship project began in Dili Timor-Leste. The co-founders from Australia, Tammy Burnstock and Wendy Chandler worked with high school students Evangelina Soares Gama and Anastácio Maderia de Araújo who both participated and helped co-facilitate the project at their school, Eskola Katólika Sagrado Coração De Jesus. Anástacio also took the project back to the orphanage where he lived.

The children in Dili were provided with cameras and encouraged to think about and photograph their life as a way of introducing themselves to children in Australia. Photographed and curated by the children themselves, these personal portraits told stories of country, the people, places and other elements of life considered important to each participant.

In Australia, teacher Gabi Wynhausen worked with children from Annandale Public School in Sydney Australia who responded to the stories created by children in Dili and in turn prepared their own photo stories to send back to Timor-Leste.

"My sister and I are drawing flowers on the beach in Dili at sunset.. The sand was very clean my sister and I wanted to make a picture. This photo is also about me because I love painting and making things.” Evangelina Soares Gama, Dili 2014

"Everyday I write about my life. My father was murdered when I was three so I went to live at the orphanage. Now I must work hard to support my six sisters.” Anastácio Maderia de Araújo, Dili 2014

You and view more foto stories from Eskola Katólika Sagrado Coração De Jesus, Dili in Gallery | group 1 on our galleries page.