Visiting and Revisiting the Inside Out Project

The photo booth at the Dallas Contemporary

Right now, the Inside Out Project is set up to take photo portraits at the Dallas Contemporary in Dallas, Texas. You can go and have your photo taken at no cost for the exhibit. There is a photo booth truck there and you take your own photo and watch it print out. (I wasn't too happy with my photo because it looks like my eyes are half-closed, but you only get one chance.) It IS inspiring to be part of such a project. So go! The photo booth will be there through March 9. The gallery opens at 11:00 on Saturday at 161 Grace Street, Dallas, Texas. There are photo booths in many other locations; check the Inside Out Project website to see if one is near you.

Exhibit at the Dallas Contemporary

About the Inside Out Project

The French artist JR is responsible for the Inside Out Project. His purpose: "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."

JR gets communities to express their most important causes and concerns in simple black and white images of human faces. These portraits are combined into huge photo installations called “street pastings”He has provided many opportunities for participatory public artworks from Australia to Europe, in 108 countries since March 2011. The artist encourages these group actions based on a variety of themes such as hope, diversity, gender-violence, climate change, and more as demonstrated with facial expressions in black and white photographs.

The print coming out of the side of the photo booth

JR exhibits in the streets of the world, using local people as the subjects of the artwork, catching the attention of people who are not typical museum visitors. He is transforming messages of personal identity into works of art all over the world. In 2006, he created Portrait of a Generation, portraits of suburban "thugs" that he posted, in huge format, in the bourgeois districts of Paris. This illegal project became "official" when the Paris City Hall wrapped its building with JR’s photos.

Exhibit in progress at the Dallas Contemporary

Beginnings

In 2007 JR made Face 2 Face, the biggest illegal exhibition ever. He posted huge portraits of Israelis and Palestinians face to face in eight Palestinian and Israeli cities. In 2008, he embarked on a long international trip for the Women Are Heroesexhibit. In it he underlines the dignity of all women, who are often the targets of conflicts.

Not happy with my photo but you only get one shot!

In 2011 JR received a prestigious TED Prize, after which he created Inside Out, the world’s largest participatory art project. This installation allows people worldwide to get their pictures taken and to paste it up in support of an idea and to share their experiences. The artworks are photographic portraits of faces with only one person per portrait. People are instructed to look straight into the camera and let their statements inspire their expression. The portraits in each Inside Out public exhibition are the people who live there.

Every exhibition is different; this one is inside the gallery; many others are outside.

New Projects

JR has been setting up photo booth trucks in different places to bring the printers directly to the streets, enabling the public to participate instantly for free. Participants enter the Photo booth truck and have their photographs taken. Within one minute, a black and white poster is printed and given to the subject. You are also sent the image by email.  Inside Out was set up in Times Square in New York City in April-May 2013 and printed and gave away 6000 posters in three weeks.

So, go find the closest photo booth and join in!