FREE WORKSHOPS THIS FALL!
The Center for Black Literature
In Association with Corridor Gallery,
the National Conference of Artists-NY & Theatre for the Free People
Presents
The Black Artist as Activist
A Creative Writing, Visual Arts and Performance Poetry Program
For Youth and Emerging Artists
Click “Programs”
Contact: Joi M. Sears, Project Director
freepeople08@me.com
About “The Black Artist as Activist”
The Center for Black Literature in association with Corridor Gallery, the National Conference of Artists-NY and Theatre for the Free People presents the Black Artist as Activist and Transformative Agent Arts Program. As a component of this program, funded by the Nathan Cummings Foundation, The Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College (CUNY) will offer FREE arts workshops which focus on issues of social justice and peace. The writing, performance, and visual art workshops are targeted to youth and emerging artists who range from age 16 – 25. Workshops will be presented at various locations throughout Brooklyn and Manhattan starting Fall 2009.
Objective
Offer a performance workshop that focuses on issues of social justice and peace for youth ages 16 through 25.
Workshops Offered
Poetry – Aracelis Girmay, Instructor
Location: Medgar Evers College (CUNY) | 1637 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11225
Tuesdays | September 22nd - December 15th | 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Performance - Joi M. Sears, Instructor
Location: Space on White | 81 White Street, New York, NY 10013
Wednesdays | October 7th - December 16th | 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Visual Art – Pamella Allen, Instructor
Location: Corridor Gallery | 334 Grand Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11238
Tuesdays and Thursdays | September 28th - October 19th | 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Curriculum
The workshops combine traditional performance techniques with modern approaches to Theatre of the Oppressed and Hip Hop Theatre methods. The participants would be asked to engage in critical thinking and constructive dialogue around the role of the Artist as Activist in our community and what steps we can take creatively to promote civic engagement. The participants would be responsible for molding their own theatrical pieces for presentation under the guidance of the facilitators for both community performance and film/video.
Timeline
Workshops will begin as early as September – late November or early December relative to the course. The workshops would be held once a week for two hours.
The participants would also be asked to participate in a performance during National Conference of Artists, Spring 2010.
Partners
Partners for the project the Corridor Gallery, a community-based gallery serving Brooklyn artists and residents and the National Conference of Artists NY, whose mission to preserve, promote and develop African American culture and artists. Support is also provided by Brotherhood-Sister Sol, a Harlem based organization which provides support and resources to Black and Latino youth, and Theatre for the Free People which is dedicated to using the arts as a vehicle for social change.
Program Target Audience
By providing a comprehensive and integrated approach to supporting and exploring the role of the Black artist as activist, the components of this project are designed to build an audience for attracting a local as well national audience and to provide venues for conversations of national and local import on the aforementioned topic. Through a range of public programs, workshops and art exhibits, the project will target several thousand people who include the general public, academics, and literary, visual and performance artists. Panel discussions on the artist as activist will be held at the annual conference of the National Conference of Artists and at the Tenth National Black Writers Conference sponsored by the Center for Black Literature in March 2010.
The project also targets urban Black and Latino artists and youth, groups who are underrepresented in cultural arts projects and institutions. Particular emphasis will also be focused on recruiting Black and Latino youth who are often depicted in negative ways in their communities and schools. As a result of the impact racism, unemployment, and poverty, these youth are often ignored. Exposing these youth to art and writing will stimulate their creativity and imagination, as well as offer them avenues for building self-esteem, reflecting on societal problems, promoting civic engagement, building community and improving their overall personal and academic success.