On 23 May 2024, the photographer Max Collier – brother of Chloé Collier, our coordinator – organised his very first photo exhibition in partnership with and in aid of Omoana in Brussels, Belgium. It was a huge success, with around 200 people attending the event!
For those who missed it, here’s the reason behind the event:
“In July 2022, Max learned that his partner was pregnant. He then embarked on a crazy project: to document this year full of discoveries, learning and experience through 365 photos – 1 per day. This series of photos is a treasure trove of memories, especially for his daughter Mia, born in July 2023. But how can we make this project even more meaningful?
It was during a conversation in December 2023, when the whole family got together for the first time in Brussels, across the borders (Canada, Switzerland, Belgium), that the idea of holding an exhibition in aid of Omoana, the charity for which Chloé works, was born. And so the adventure began!
Chloé joined Omoana just over 2 years ago, with a view to working in particular with former child soldiers, a population that is particularly close to her heart. As she puts it: ‘Leaving these children aside means creating a time bomb. Reaching out to these children means giving peace a chance’. With both their parents born and raised in Africa, and Chloé having lived there, the continent has always held a special significance for Max and Chloé. As they have always been so close-knit, they wanted to hold an event that reflected them, as a family, in the place where they grew up. So it was only natural that they should join forces for this exhibition, and in their own small way help to make the world a fairer place. And in so doing, they will be teaching Mia that helping your neighbour is also helping yourself and, above all, that we are never too much to help each other up.”
A huge thank you to everyone who attended and all those who helped organise the evening, especially to L’Accord Vin, Atelier du Photographe, ZLAB et L’Usine.
