Brooklyn photographer unites her community through art

NEW YORK - The Bed-Stuy Social Photo Club exhibit is the brainchild of professional photographer Hidemi Takagi, who set up a photo studio outside of her apartment and encouraged others in the neighborhood to pose for a free portrait.

The photos were taken with a selection of bright props and always depicted their subjects against a vibrant, colorful background. Now, over 40 of those portraits are being showcased outside of the Billie Holiday Theater.

“This is one way of saying to people ‘you matter’ in a world that sometimes doesn’t always evaluate them properly,” said Billie Holiday Theater Creative Director Hollis King. King said he saw the exhibit as an answer for a growing number of people in the neighborhood who are wondering where they fit in now and in the future.

“They were born here and they grew up here and they still hang out here and they’re still friends and I thought that was very beautiful,” Takagi said. 

The exhibit officially opens to the public on Thursday night and will run through October 26.