Digitising our photos (while we can still talk about them)

Working from neighbourhood houses within 5km, a series of 8 pop-up fast scanning services will help residents rescue their photographs and share them with younger generations. As growth and gentrification advance at an accelerated rate in the inner suburbs, many are choosing to move away from their family homes. Their memories end up packed into boxes from which often they will never emerge. Without access to access to high-speed scanning equipment, the simple task of digitising precious archives is extremely time consuming. We aim to attract 800 people for whom we will scan up to 500 images for each.

Transferring family photographs to a non-fading, paperless, shareable format is a crucial step to encouraging people to talk about their past. This will give younger generations a priceless opportunity to explore their family’s journey and better understand their identity. Particularly important will be the opportunity to engage in conversation with elders, ensuring that cultural and social attitudes are understood and not just unconsciously perpetuated. By turning each session into a small neighbourhood festival including local musicians and food prepared by residents, we will also provide an opportunity to make new connections in the community.