About three months before the anniversary party of the street. The street turned 100 years old in 2011.
Some neighbors wanted to make a party as the street in which we lived turned 100. I offered to layout an exhibition, if someone else would get all the material. Finally, I did most of the job, searching for material and stories and organizing the items in the exhibition.
Nobody volunteered to do the research and talk with the neighbors, so I coordinated everything the help of two other persons. I digitalized images and put the story together using all the material we could get. I interviewed the neighbors and heard a lot of stories, writing them down afterward. I organized the content, made the layout and the exhibition design. I curated all the material and organized the content, laying out the posters for the shop windows. One year after the celebration I made a booklet with all the material.
How to manage and encourage the involvement of other people. How to make a project leaving everyone feeling that they are also part of it and its success. If you ask anybody to volunteer and contribute pictures, it is not a good idea to discard something. Using everything shows the appreciation for the input.
Interviewing the neighbors. I always love to listen to the stories of life of other people, when they feel secure to tell. Learning about the history of the place I live.
