A picture is worth a thousand words.  I’ve always credited Kodak for that, but perhaps I should dig deeper for attribution. Regardless, I have found that so much meaning is instantly conveyed by images, as opposed to mere words. And you know how seriously I take my words.

The CVC hosted our first Essential Photovoice (EPV) workshop over six weeks in January through mid-February. Twenty-two community members spent two and a half hours with us each Wednesday – quite a commitment. We burned through a lot of social capital to get them to attend; bless them for their trust.

When Julie and I pitched EPV to them, we described it as Community Conversations (constructive dialogue around difficult subjects) with photos (and snacks). This is a bit of an oversimplification. Essential Photovoice weaves together dialogue skills with a process for generating reflection and conversation through visual prompts. Amateur photography and group discussions capture people’s perspectives of their communities.

This diverse group was facilitated by Jim Barth, Erin Butler, Grace Cannon-Wallace, Julie Greer, Cathi Kindt, and me. The six of us had the privilege of being chosen in the spring of 2022 as the country’s first pilot project of Essential Photovoice. That’s right, Sheridan, Wyoming – the center of the universe! We both experienced and learned how to facilitate EPV via Zoom and loved it, so imagine our excitement to do it ourselves in person.

The subject for this inaugural project was a photographic conversation around growth and change in Sheridan County. Each week, the participants were given a prompt and then had a few days to go around their community and snap photos that illustrated their perspective of the prompt.

The first week was centered around the local participants getting to know each other and their connection to their community. That prompt asked for pictures to help people understand something meaningful about them and some that would help people understand something about their community.

The next week we asked for examples of how the community was growing and flourishing. We asked for examples of our community’s deepest challenges in the third week. Finally, we requested photos representing the participants’ vision for the future of their community.

Each week, the participants met with their small group and facilitator. They took turns explaining their photos in response to the weekly prompt, listening to clarifying questions from one another, and answering them as time permitted.

After the small group discussions, we all met in a big group and talked about themes, similarities, and differences in the photos. The fifth week was when participants narrowed their eight-plus photos to two that acknowledged changed and preserved connection. With those combined 44 photos, participants started to group them into identified values. That wasn’t easy, but it prompted more rich discussion.

After titling and captioning them, the photos were ready for primetime- the public exhibition at Whitney Center for the Arts at Sheridan College, March 13-24. I invite you to attend the reception on Thursday, March 16, from 4:00-6:00 p.m.  You can see the photos, chat with the photographers, and learn the stories behind their pictures.  The exhibition is a fantastic visual representation of different perspectives, hopes, and concerns for our community. If your calendar is booked on the 16th, don’t hesitate to stop in during the other days. It’s worth your time.

This was a tremendous learning experience for all of us, and we can’t wait to do it again. The CVC will never miss an opportunity to foster rich discussion about our community – now, we have another way to illustrate a thousand words through EPV.