Through This Lens
It is an incredible honor to lead Through This Lens, a project that unites Charlotteans through the connection and power of their immigrant stories. There are three hopes for this project. The first is to reveal truth by offering multiple lenses into the immigrant experience. Second, Through This Lens aims to create space for these stories to be seen and heard. Finally, the hope is for Charlotteans, who identify as immigrants, to feel a collective immigrant pride.
My breath was taken away by the beauty, joy, resilience, and pride when listening to the stories of the Charlotteans in this installation. It moved me. You will see a glimpse of who they are in the installation today. Through one-on-one conversations, I learned about each community member’s story and recorded the conversation. After our conversations, I took photos of each community member.
I hope you enjoy catching a glimpse through the lens of each of the incredible human beings’ lenses in this project. We hope you will continue to follow us as the project evolves and the installation travels around the community.
With deep gratitude,
Deepti Panjabi