RESEARCH COLUMN
BY: JENNIFER RODRIGUES
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| Annie, a Catholic, was teaching in Malaysia at an international school when she met Sunder, a practicing Hindu. Both of their families have embraced the fact that they are together in an interfaith relationship and are enjoying the opportunity to learn more about their differences. - Interlovepoject.com pic, November 7, 2014. |
I am the project manager of a recently launched documentary photography project, INTERLOVE, founded by Canadian Photographer and creator of Cosmopolis Toronto, Colin Boyd Shafer.
The goal of the project is to show love is happening in complex situations here and Canada, and we aim to show this by photographing and sharing the stories of 100 interfaith couples across Canada. In order to achieve this goal we’ve launched a crowdfunding campaign on indiegogo. If we surpass our funding goal, we will produce a documentary about the project and an exhibition. You can read the first five moving love stories on our website.
Based on stories we’ve from heard friends, stories on the news, and what we’ve learnt through research, we have found that interfaith relationships is still very much difficult topic to discuss for many people and faith communities. In many countries around the world, it is not safe to have interfaith relationships, and in many the topic is not open for discussion.
It is this need to break down barriers and create a civil dialogue that nurtures and supports the social good that drives this project. We want to show how couples learn to celebrate and cherish their differences rather than squabble over them. We want create a critical dialogue about the complexities of interfaith relationships, while celebrating how people with differing beliefs come together in love in Canada.
Editor's Note: Jennifer Rodrigues is a second year MMSt student who graduated from the University of Waterloo with a degree in Anthropology. In addition to INTERLOVE, she has also worked as the Sponsorship Coordinator for Cosmopolis Toronto. If you are a Museum Studies student engaged in research for a work, volunteer, or school project that you would like to share, please contact Robin Nelson.
The goal of the project is to show love is happening in complex situations here and Canada, and we aim to show this by photographing and sharing the stories of 100 interfaith couples across Canada. In order to achieve this goal we’ve launched a crowdfunding campaign on indiegogo. If we surpass our funding goal, we will produce a documentary about the project and an exhibition. You can read the first five moving love stories on our website.
Based on stories we’ve from heard friends, stories on the news, and what we’ve learnt through research, we have found that interfaith relationships is still very much difficult topic to discuss for many people and faith communities. In many countries around the world, it is not safe to have interfaith relationships, and in many the topic is not open for discussion.
It is this need to break down barriers and create a civil dialogue that nurtures and supports the social good that drives this project. We want to show how couples learn to celebrate and cherish their differences rather than squabble over them. We want create a critical dialogue about the complexities of interfaith relationships, while celebrating how people with differing beliefs come together in love in Canada.
Editor's Note: Jennifer Rodrigues is a second year MMSt student who graduated from the University of Waterloo with a degree in Anthropology. In addition to INTERLOVE, she has also worked as the Sponsorship Coordinator for Cosmopolis Toronto. If you are a Museum Studies student engaged in research for a work, volunteer, or school project that you would like to share, please contact Robin Nelson.
This is great Jen! I really enjoyed reading the stories that are currently online and am happy to see the project is at 92% of the first goal. I was struck by this section of the indiegogo page:
ReplyDelete"This project will surely inspire important dialogue. This is crucial. In many countries around the world, it is not safe to have interfaith relationships, and in many the topic is not open for discussion."
Thanks for sharing this dialogue with us!