The push for educational reforms in Africa has been prevalent for decades. While there has been a significant effort to emphasize the importance of education in children, Africa still struggles with one main issue today: education for girls. According to Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, “The highest rate of girls not in school is across the African continent,” and, “some countries lose more than one billion dollars a year by failing to educate girls to the same level as boys” (Dickinson). In relation to this ongoing issue and to commemorate 2016’s International Day of the Girl Child, Jeremy Tan and Ella Dickinson released images and interviews of girls across Kenya. One of these depicts Carol from Gatina, who believes that her education has given her opportunities to become a leader. Through their photography, Tan and Dickinson strategically reflect Carol’s optimistic outlook of the future with the use of realism, direction, space, color and contrast. The image reiterates the importance of education for girls, especially in impoverished countries, and displays that there is a positive outlook towards the future of girls in Africa. Tan and Dickinson’s use of realism strengthens the message in their photography.

In this instance, realism is more impactful than abstraction for representing the lives of African girls, which is a topic that is heavily influenced by their living conditions in the real world. Thus, there is an importance of accurately representing the area in which they live so that when one sees the image, they can view the world from the perspective of these girls. In Carol’s image, one is be able to view her home, made of rusted, metal walls and using a cloth as a doorway. The realism of the image allows for the most accurate depiction of the fact that she does not live in a wealthy area. When one sees the image, they can view the home as if they are Carol and, in turn, empathize with her living conditions, feelings, and attitudes as well. Where  abstraction would take away from the image’s main purpose, realism enhances it. Realism strengthens the message created within the photo by creating feelings of empathy while the use of direction develops the meaning further because it forms the main focus of the image. 

The overall meaning that there is a brighter future ahead for African girls is aided by both the direction of the viewpoint and the direction of Carol’s gaze. The direction of the point of view in this image is towards Carol, therefore, depicting her as the main focus of the work. By doing so, Tan and Dickinson emphasize that the photo is meant to convey a message that is specific to Carol and those who are in similar situations to her. In other words, Tan and Dickinson are creating a focus on girls in Africa who live in areas where there is poverty. While the direction of the viewpoint establishes the focus of the image, the direction Carol is looking towards creates meaning in the photo. Carol’s gaze is towards an object that is beyond or, in other words, that is unseen to those viewing the image. With that in mind, one can say that Carol is looking towards her future and aspirations. The goals that she establishes cannot be seen by other people, however, one can work towards these goals to create a pathway towards her own future. Along with her gaze, Carol has an expression that is calm that can also be seen as anticipating. All things considered, Carol’s gaze is a representation for her hope and expectancy towards the future.  

In a similar fashion to direction, space is utilized by Tan and Dickinson to establish focus within the image. Around Carol is a large amount of space mainly depicting her home but nothing beyond it. The walls of the home seem to surround Carol and, as a result, puts focus on her. The use of space reiterates the importance of Carol herself and her perspective of the future, rather than the perspective of the person who is looking at the photo. On the other hand, the chosen space of the image (Carol and her home) also brings forth attention to what the photo does not display. Compared with the direction of Carol’s gaze, the limited space makes those who are viewing the image ask: what is she looking at? In turn, one will try to imagine what is outside of the picture. Again, Tan and Dickinson are portraying the concept of Carol looking towards her future; the future beyond the image, as someone’s goals towards the future cannot be seen by other people. While space provides a thought-provoking insight on Carol’s the future and goals, color exposes her personal characteristics and her position compared to the world around her. 

Although there are several colors shown within Tan and Dickinson’s photo, the most noticeable colors are gold and brown. The walls of Carol’s home are brown with small parts of gold, while her shirt is mainly gold. Brown can be associated with the earth as well as frugality and dependability. In this instance, the brown is contained on the walls of Carol’s home, suggesting that it is a dependable and familiar place to her, in other words: Africa is where her origins are and where she is most comfortable. Carol’s home is also frugal or simple, so it does not provide for anything other than the most basic needs. In contrast, the color gold is associated with wealth. However, the color was also associated with wisdom and courage in ancient civilizations. Within the photo, gold is the most prominent on Carol’s shirt. Therefore, the color indicates the wisdom that Carol has achieved through schooling as well as the courage that she currently displays by being active in achieving her aspirations. Carol says, “My hope is to be a banker, I will even try to raise the economy of Kenya. I know I can help others who don’t have an education” (Dickinson). With this in mind, the small spots of gold on the walls of Carol’s home can represent the actual wealth, as well as wealth in the form of knowledge, that she will bring back to Kenya after accomplishing her goals. Tan and Dickinson’s use of color defines Carol’s living conditions and clarifies her aspirations. Contrast, like direction and space, establish focus on Carol but also portrays her hope. 

The contrast of the image is created with lighting because it separates Carol from her home. The walls of the home are dark and rusted, while Carol is adorned with bright clothing. Normally, when one thinks of the dark, it is mainly associated with negative aspects such as, being lost and gloom. However, light is seen as hope and new opportunities. Carol’s home is a representation that, currently, Africa is not an ideal place for girls to obtain the futures that they desire. However, Carol still has hope to accomplish her goals and believes that the future will be better for girls, like herself. The contrast of Carol next to the rusted walls further establishes her positive attitude towards the future because, when seen against the dark surroundings, she appears to be brighter. As a result, one will move their attention towards Carol rather than the old, rusted walls of her home. The contrast of Carol against her home represents her bright future and is the embodiment of what Tan and Dickenson wanted to capture with their photography. 

In honor of 2016’s International Day of the Girl Child, Tan and Dickinson chose to take images of young girls in Africa in order to spread their positive views on the future. Many of the young girls, like Carol, indicated that education was the main reason why they believe they could help Africa develop into a better country. Tan and Dickinson capture Carol as a girl who is anticipating a bright and better future for herself. The two photographers successfully create this message by their choice of realism, which reestablishes the real world context that the image derives from and allows others to see in Carol’s perspective. Along with realism, the photographers also made use of direction and space to develop the concept that Carol is looking beyond what one sees. The limited space of the photo, along with the direction of Carol’s is looking towards can represent that she is seeing her future. Similarly, colors within the image, specifically gold and brown, establish that Carol is hopeful for her own future and is confident that she can make her country better. In addition, the lighting of the photo created a contrast that further elaborates on Carol’s positive outlook. Although the image mainly focuses on Carol, Tan and Dickinson uses her as a model for all African girls. To the viewer, she reflects the attitudes of every girl in similar situations as her. Overall, the photo forms the message that girls in Africa are anticipating the future without fear, but hope. Currently, Africa is making the effort to educate their children and, more recently, focusing on bringing their young girls to school. The rise in hope for the future is due to this effort because Africa girls feel that their education has opened up more opportunities. Although education within Africa is not perfect, it is continually getting better. Gradually, Africa is creating an educational environment that provides equal opportunities for both males and females. As a result, young girls, such as Carol, are growing up with hope that they can make the country better with their education. 
