California Story Fund
Shifting Perceptions on the Urban Edge
City of Brentwood Arts Commission
Brentwood
Project Director: Gail Wadsworth
Documenting farm families in a rapidly developing area
The area surrounding the City of Brentwood in Contra Costa County is rapidly changing with new suburbs springing up where family farms used to be. This project will document through personal interviews, and photographs approximately 30 farm families in Brentwood.
Project Director Gail Wadsworth said, “These farmers grow diverse crops but share similar values and a similar vision for agriculture in the region. This project will give them a voice and raise awareness of the farming culture in Contra Costa County. We also hope that it will connect people who would not otherwise interact, including the longtime resident and the new neighbor, and the farmer and the suburbanite.”
An exhibit of the stories and photographs will take place in Brentwood in June and July 2007. At the exhibit’s opening, a panel of farmers involved in the project will present their views on the current state of regional agriculture.