Hope in Shadows (New Art at Bandidas)

We’re thrilled to welcome this initiative back to our walls. Since 2003, Megaphone's Hope in Shadows calendar project has offered meaningful work and empowerment through art to people experiencing poverty. The calendar and monthly magazine are sold on the streets of Vancouver and Victoria by vendors who are homeless and low-income. Vendors buy each calendar for $10 and sell it to customers for $20. They buy each magazine for 75 cents and sell it for $2. It's an important source of income and community connection for people marginalized by poverty. The project offers a chance for vendors to make positive change in their lives and to challenge the harmful stigma that surrounds poverty.

All photographs in the contest were taken by vendors. In June 2017, Megaphone held a series of photography workshops for vendors, distributing roughly 50 single-use disposable film cameras. Vendors had 5 days to capture images on the theme of Heart and Soul: the places, objects, people, and relationships that are bright spots in their lives. The photos show strength, beauty, and resilience in the face of stigma and hardship, and capture our communities from a different perspective.

The photos will be on our walls for the next few weeks, but calendars are not for sale at the restaurant. You’ll need to find a vendor to purchase your calendar and monthly magazines. Read more at megaphonemagazine.com and consider donating to this great cause.