Malala Fund and 1854 commissioned three female-identifying photographers to create new work featuring a young woman in their community who inspires them.
Malala Fund aims to showcase girls as they are: strong, ambitious and full of agency. In this spirit, we partnered with Studio 1854 and the British Journal of Photography on a year-long photography project called Against All Odds that aimed to highlight young women’s stories in a creative, collaborative way.
Through the Against All Odds project, we commissioned three female-identifying photographers to create new work featuring a young woman in their community who inspires them. Each subject also had the opportunity to tell her own story through a photo essay on Assembly, Malala Fund’s digital publication and newsletter for girls. “Young women around the world are taking action to drive change,” Malala says of the project. “Against all odds they’re calling out injustices, challenging gender discrimination and tackling barriers to go to school. I want to amplify their stories.”
The commission was open to women and nonbinary photographers from around the world. To increase accessibility, photographers from low-income countries and Malala Fund programme countries were able to apply free of charge. Each finalist received a £2,000 creative grant from 1854 and was selected by Malala from a shortlist compiled by judges from both 1854 and the communications team at Malala Fund. Recipients of the grant included Silvana Trevale from Venezuela, Hady Barry from Guinea and Lina Geoushy from Egypt.
Each of the talented photographers brought their unique style and perspective to the project and captured striking, joyful portraits of their subjects. The photographers also conducted their projects in collaboration with the young women they photographed — asking for input and ensuring girls felt secure in their portrayal throughout the process.
Venezuelan photographer Silvana Trevale spent a week in Paparo and Caracas with 16-year-old student Katty Reyes, whom she has known for years. Silvana hopes her photographs — captured on an outing to a local beach — exude Katty’s promise and strength, and shine light on how Venezuela’s economic crisis has affected its young people. “I hope that through these photos, you come to know the truth of the situation and that this is a story that is not only mine but also belongs to many Venezuelans — especially young people,” writes Katty in her accompanying photo essay for Assembly. Through captions to Silvana’s photographs, Katty explains how national issues like food and gas shortages, unclean water and power outages are impacting her studies and what she hopes will change in her country.
Guinean photographer Hady Barry set out to document 13-year-old Aïssatou Lamarana Diallo during her first few days of secondary school in Tolo, a rural village in Guinea. For Hady, whose father grew up in the village, the project was an opportunity to let Aïssatou tell her own story. "I didn’t want to just show up to Tolo, take photos of Aïssatou from my limited perspective, and then go on my merry way,” Hady explains. Instead, she gave Aïssatou a Polaroid camera to carry to and from school for three months, documenting life as it happened around her. In her piece for Assembly, Aïssatou shares a series of Polaroids capturing details of her life at home — from her mother’s provisions shop to her family cow, Arsiqué.
Lina Geoushy, a photographer from Egypt, focused her commission on 20-year-old footballer Rooka Saeed and 20-year old Olympic gymnast Malak Hamza, who are challenging gender norms in their hometowns in Egypt. “Athletes, especially talented female athletes, deserve to get the support and recognition that their male peers receive,” says Lina. She wanted her work with Malak and Rooka to showcase the different and complex realities female athletes in Egypt experience. For their Assembly pieces Malak shares a photo essay about training for the Olympic games and finding her way in the gym, and Rooka writes about challenging stereotypes as a female football player in Egypt.
"It has been an honour to work with Malala Fund and to have had the opportunity to share the stories of four remarkable girls through the eyes of three incredible women photographers,” says Zoe Harrison, Head of Production at 1854 Media. "With this project, we aimed to celebrate the extraordinary determination and agency of young women facing challenging circumstances, and Katty, Malak, Rooka, and Aïssatou truly embody that potential. Silvana Trevale, Lina Geoushy and Hady Barry captured the young womens' unique spirits with care, sensitivity and enthusiasm and we were delighted to have had the ability to share them with the world."
