Wessel Photography Program at San Pedro & Peninsula YMCA
July 9 – August 8, 2024
Ann & Steve Hinchliffe San Pedro & Peninsula YMCA in partnership with Palos Verdes Art Center asked teens to GET CREATIVE last summer in the Wessel Photography Program. Led by LA-based photojournalist and artist Henry Cherry, the five-week program guided teens to a fun and engaging exploration of photography.
They tried out multiple processes of photography in various settings and shared work with their peers. They played with color, composition, light, and shadow to create exciting effects. By the end of the course, students were able to express their creativity, and converse about photography, with confidence. This class met at the San Pedro & Peninsula YMCA for five weeks, July 9 – August 8, on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2-3:30pm.
Teaching artist Henry Cherry is an award-winning journalist, documentary filmmaker, and artist based in Los Angeles, California. Cherry studied painting and film at Antioch College in Ohio and at the University of Texas Radio Television and Film School. His work as a chef, ranch hand, bar owner, and musician has enabled him to think out of the box, which aided in the creation of this program. The artist describes his goals for the program in this way, “As much as a photography class should explore light and angles and framing organically, it should offer playfulness of spirit and kind intent. If you’re having fun your subjects respond. Photography is something you can do for the rest of your life.”
This program is funded by the John Wessel Photography Endowment. For information on how to contribute to this fund, please contact Community Engagement Director Gail Phinney at gphinney@pvartcenter.org
John Wessel Photography Program 2024
Going through the images the students of the John Wessel Photography Class from the summer of 2024, I remembered immediately that each of the kids had a much broader understanding of basic photography than I did at their age. That was a big part of what made this class interesting each session, their inquisitiveness and their inherent talent. Looking at the landscapes, the photos of lizards, of their classmates, I can’t help but remember that it really was a remarkable way to spend 10 summer afternoons last year.
We used a host of different cameras including an instant film one. We spent time scouring the neighborhood, searching for angles, subjects and the right light. We walked the grounds of the Y every class. So much of photography is getting to know the people and things you photograph, and in this class, we all started getting better photos as everyone got to know each other better.
With zoom lenses, primes, point and shoots, these kids created a series of images that only get better the more you look at them. A strong sense of exploration lives within the images the kids made. Their photos exude confidence and curiosity. They assert themselves with an artistic flair without sacrificing the immediacy of their creation. I’m extremely gratified to have been a part of this process, but make no mistake; these images belong to the students. It is their creativity, their visual language that marks each of their photos with vitality.
Henry Cherry
Teaching Artist
Scroll down to view work from the 2024 Wessel Photography Program-
Scroll down to view work from the 2023 Wessel Photography Program-
