positive-exposure

Positive Exposure uses the arts to challenge the perception of people living with difference. Through innovative partnerships and worldwide travel, we connect people living with genetic conditions, health practitioners, medical educators, students, and the general public.

People living with albinism in East Africa are a stark example of the consequences of a society that devalues difference. PE has a special focus on helping these individuals achieve a better quality of life, and has already traveled to Tanzania twice in partnership with another human rights organization, Under the Same Sun. PE is undertaking an educational expedition in the region as part of a documentary with Kartemquin Films this year.

We look forward to a world where all children living with genetic difference grow up without stigma, are educated in a supportive environment of their peers, and grow up to be examples to the larger society of the possibilities within difference.

POSITIVE EXPOSURE, founded in 1997 by former fashion photographer Rick Guidotti and Diane McLean, MD, PhD, MPH, is an innovative arts organization working with individuals living with genetic difference. The photo essay “Redefining Beauty” in Life Magazine, which won the Genetic Alliance’s “Art of Reporting” award, was the beginning of Positive Exposure's visual response to the need for more nuanced portrayal of difference in all areas of society. The body of work entitled “Positive Exposure, The Spirit of Difference” premiered at the People’s Genome Celebration, June 2001, at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in DC. and continues to exhibit in galleries, museums and public arenas internationally. Currently the subject of a documentary by Kartemquin Films, Positive Exposure continues to photograph global communities of difference and exhibit at galleries, universities, and public spaces worldwide.