Art tells a story, even in its greatest abstraction. So what happens when you capitalize on its storytelling potential in a super intentional way to build relationships between artists and community members? You get 15 St. Olaf art students Zumba-ing in a local elementary school.
Wait…what?!?
It all started when Michon Weeks, Associate Professor of Practice in Art and Art History, wanted to do another ACE project during the 2018-19 school year; previously, she and her students completed the warming house mural in Way Park in 2015. As part of the ACE Faculty Community of Practice, she was learning more about best practices and trying to determine what course and project might be the best fit. After discussing options with the ACE office, she landed on an assignment in her ART 232: Figure Drawing course called “Tattooed Self.” This assignment involves a human body overlaid with a tattoo or pattern, which could present a great way to tell a part of someone’s identity and values. In brainstorming possible partners and people to collaborate with, a key question was: who might be some folks whose stories are not readily told? Ultimately, we partnered with the Healthfinders Collaborative‘s Zumba class at Greenvale Park Community School, or GVPCS (maybe also partly inspired by the colorfully patterned attire that is typically worn by the dancers).
What did they do? The St. Olaf students visited one Zumba class to do gestural drawing during it, inviting the Zumba ladies to participate in learning this drawing technique—and to also Zumba themselves! Then afterward, the students were paired with a Zumba lady to talk about some things that are important to her: family, traditions, etc. The students then took that information and created a portrait of their partner, returning later for a second day of Zumba-ing and sharing of their final pieces. Each student shared a few thoughts on the artwork and what inspired them. Each participant was given a copy to take home. Perhaps a sign of success was that other women who stayed for the presentation and weren’t at the first class said, “We want a portrait, too! Come back!”
Eddie Bryson, a student in the course, shared the following about his experience:
From this experience, I developed my understanding of how creative expression can capture the essence of an identity, a cultural influence, etc. within portraiture through subtle or exaggerated ways based on how your interactions with the person informs your creativity. The principles of design share a presence in the characteristics of a person’s life. Like the different rhythms in life, different patterns, and different colors that have different significance.
This was also the most experience I’ve had interacting with the Latino community off-campus. Here, sometimes it feels like outside this campus we’re surrounded by a community with nothing but white: white people, white culture, and white snow. It’s enlightening to get to spend time, a fun time, with and share something special to me, my art, with members of the community that many of us don’t remember to acknowledge enough. I didn’t know how much I would appreciate that until I was able to have that interaction.
I keep seeking to learn more and more about people because it helps drive the empathy I use to inspire my creative works and my work with the community. I can’t express enough how teaching this project was just on how much you learn from interviewing someone from a different background.
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