Eyes are a Window to the Soul

In 2011, JR made his TED Prize wish:

"I wish for you to stand up for what you care about by participating in a global art project, and together we'll turn the world...INSIDE OUT."

Since JR made his wish, The INSIDE OUT project has traveled from Ecuador to Nepal, and Mexico to Palestine, inspiring group actions on varied themes such as hope, diversity, gender-based violence, and climate change. Over 110,000 portraits have been pasted in 108 countries worldwide. An HBO documentary feature on the project is due for worldwide release this Spring.

INSIDE OUT 11M brought the project to the Bay Area via Photo booth Trucks, giving us two backdrops that we can use for our photo booths at Rooftop.

Two years later, in 2013:

A fresh photo via Facebook of JR's pasting project in Kenya.

JR posts: 

Just received this areal view from Kenya! My team just finished installing 4000 meter square of images printed on vinyl to protect the roof of the community against the rain. This is not part of the art project "Women Are Heroes" we did 4 years ago and that is still visible on this image. Since 4 years ago, we go back every year and that's what you can see on this image.. the difference of black and white is due to how long they have been put up  This is done with no autorisation except the one of the community and with no other financing than what we raise via my artworks... Congrats to the team for helping the 40 men on the ground who put it up for their neighberhood. As one women told me years ago in Kibera " Art can be useful"  #Kenya

A Magic Portal

TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design.

At TED's annual staff retreats, everyone has to get up and talk about something -- either about work, or about something interesting from their own lives. In fall of 2012, TED's Lisa Bu prepared a talk about her love of reading. The quiet, funny and efficient Content Distribution Manager brought down the house, with a story that was too good not to share. Lisa is the first TED staffer ever to be invited to speak on the mainstage at the TED Conference.

As a young girl of growing up in Hunan, China in the 1970's, Lisa had dreams of becoming a Chinese opera singer, but received little encouragement or support from the adults in her life to pursue her dream. Chinese Opera students start their acrobatic training from a very early age, and at the age of 15, Lisa knew that she had missed her window of opportunity.

My dream would never come true. I was afraid that for the rest of my life some second-class happiness would be the best I could hope for.

She was determined to find another dream. With no one around to teach her, Lisa realized that books could help her to discover who and what she wanted to be.

Lisa talks about comparative reading, gaining insight by reading books in pairs, a standard academic practice that she used in her job as a researcher. She began thinking about her reading in a new way.

“Compare and contrast gives scholars a more complete understanding of a topic.  So I thought, well, if comparative reading works for research, why not do it in daily life too?” 

She thoughtfully pairs the books that she reads using a kaleidoscope of criteria. She reads books about different people involved in the same event or she might read the same stories in different genres. She reads similar stories from different cultures, and she even reads in different languages.

“Books have given me a magic portal to connect with people of the past and the present. I know I shall never feel lonely or powerless again. Having a dream shattered really is nothing compared to what many others have suffered. I have come to believe that coming true is not the only purpose of a dream. Its most important purpose is to get us in touch with where dreams come from, where passion comes from, where happiness comes from.” 

The Common Core Reading Standards for Literature K-5, “Integration of Knowledge and Ideas” invites students to “compare and contrast” while reading.  

Will the grown ups remember that books and reading are a way for kids to discover dreams, passion and happiness?

Be sure to watch for the signs...