If you passed through the Lauer Center on Lakeland University’s main campus during the dates Feb. 19 through Feb. 26 last week, you’ll notice the space being filled with a large picture frames of various people. The Color-Brave Photo Project, presented by Fit Oshkosh, has made its way to Lakeland University. The Color-Brave Photo Project is an exhibition that displays portraits of people of color that reside in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Colleen Bies, an Oshkosh native, photographed the people on the portraits and each portrait comes along with stories from the respective peoples’ lives.

The exhibition being displayed is entitled Color-Brave Photo Project: Black and Brown Faces, A New Narrative. Fit Oshkosh’s main purpose is to break up the common grounds of stereotype within the people of color community in Oshkosh and create a society where, no matter what your racial identity is, you are valued. They want the audience to explore more about the people of color displayed and see how negative the impacts of stereotypes have on them individually and as a community.

Tracey Robertson, Executive Director of Fit Oshkosh, has stated that, “The goal of the project is to create a new narrative, because we know that people are more complex and their reasons for moving into any community vary. Ultimately, the exhibition is a celebration of people of color, our choices, and our lives with our own images and stories.”

The Color-Brave Photo Project travel all over the state of Wisconsin in hopes of expanding their message and give thought provoking moments for audiences that are in attendance. Their next event will be at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College in Green Bay, Wisconsin from March 2 through March 17.