Feature Stories
Art as Advocator
By Iris Binor
Art Teacher
Hyde Park Academy High School
Chicago, Illinois
In September of 2007, I began my third year of teaching at the same urban high school. This year, though, was slightly different; I was now the visual arts department chair and three new young teachers had just begun. It seemed change was in the air, at least in the art department. Every year as teachers, we ask ourselves: Will it get easier this year? What projects will I plan and implement? How can I really reach out to the kids? Will the school finally realize that art is important, even though it is not considered a "core subject"?
Teaching art in an urban high school has its challenges. Test scores are usually the focus of city schools, especially those on probation. Administrators stress the importance of the core subjects. The art department is often an afterthought, especially when it is a physically isolated place, where it seems that only students visit. Our students face realities that are not addressed in textbooks: pregnancy, homelessness, gangs, racism, drugs, and fear. When I heard that one of my students from my eighth period had been killed, I knew my art lessons would have to change. The students were in shock. One ninth-grader cried out, "Everyone, just so you know-I love all of you! I love you all because I don't know if I'll be here tomorrow." I needed to really connect with my students and create meaningful artwork by showing them more contemporary work that was relevant to them and their lives.
Wanting my students to get out of the school building and experience something different, I took them to the Congo Square Theatre Company in Chicago to see Elmina's Kitchen, written by Kwame Kwei-Armah and directed by Derrick Sanders. The play explores contemporary social issues that I knew would grab the interest of my students. They were amazed and moved by the story. We returned to the classroom slightly changed. Then we began an art project inspired by the work of Kara Walker that would foster more change.
First, we looked at Walker's body of work. As a contemporary artist who often creates visual narrative in cut-paper silhouettes, Walker's work is a study of racial traumas within both contemporary and historic society. After discussing at length the meanings and impact of the play, students broke into groups of four. They each selected a scene and practiced the characters' physical positions and attitudes; then the students "froze" in position. Some of the students improvised and created their own positions to express their feelings. After taking photos of the students in these poses, I had each student stand in front of a black piece of paper and shined light to create a shadow. Two students traced the resulting body shapes with white crayon and other students cut out the images. When finished, we had an installation piece that was a visual narrative of the play. The students themselves installed the mural in the art gallery space.
My students loved this project. They loved working together and felt that what they did was important, that what they did had value. After coming up with the title, Fathers Sons Mothers Daughters Sisters Brothers Stop the Violence, all we had left to do was invite the faculty to see our mural on the fourth floor.
What happened next was unexpected. Several teachers created assignments based on the work, student artwork was printed in the school newspaper, and interdisciplinary lesson plans were created from my growing relationships with teachers from other disciplines. The art department's isolation became a thing of the past. It turns out that when you take on a real problem that the community is experiencing, people take notice. Art can be a springboard and an advocate for change in students, parents, teachers, and your own classroom practice. My lesson? Create art that is meaningful. It's important for everyone.
Hyde Park Academy High School. Detail of Fathers Sons Mothers Daughters Sisters Brothers Stop the Violence. 2007. Student installation.
Arts Advocacy: Small Things Mean A Lot!
By Michael Jothen
Professor of Music
Towson University
Towson, Maryland
As we neared the trailhead, we saw a BIG sign that read:
Warning!
No shelter from insects on trail!
Proceed at own risk!
Well, our family had searched out this state park. We had our supplies. We were ready. No sign was going to stop us! Paying heed to the "warning," we lathered and sprayed on repellant. We knew we could withstand any natural onslaught. It wasn't too long, however, before our leisurely stroll became more of an Olympic walking event. The occasional swat became a more frequent flailing as we dashed and then sprinted to the end of the trail. Our initial casual banter turned into yelping, yelling, and the impassioned instruction to "Keep quiet!" as a means of avoiding a mouth full of insects!
So what does this family event have to do with arts advocacy? The Arts are more pervasive in our 21st-century lives than at any other time in history. Our choices of toothbrushes, cars, lawn mowers, food mixers, hair colors, cereal, wedding music, clothing, etc. are influenced by artistic considerations. The potential for the Arts to be meaningful in our lives is astounding and unlimited! However, many of us, including myself, have limited artistic expertise and have sprinted from these choices. Since the Arts are pervasive and potentially meaningful, we must intentionally engage the Arts in order to inform our everyday decisions.
As we move through life, what can-what do-we bring to our Arts experiences? How can we develop, refine, and expand our sensitivities towards the Arts we experience? As my family hiked that trail, we increasingly became aware of and reacted to the insects. Our lives changed, our perspectives changed, our decisions changed, and most certainly our pace changed! If we can become more intentional towards and with the Arts, our lives can be richer. Our decisions can be more enriching. We can approach and think about all of life's choices with added insight as a result of considering artistic considerations. Intentionality regarding the Arts demands advocacy.
Arts advocacy is acting on the belief that enabling all people to become intentional towards the Arts is important. To accomplish this, we must strive to engage decision makers on behalf of all people regarding the need for intentionality. Our initial swats at the occasional insect drew little attention. As the number of insects multiplies and we become increasingly more aware, we can respond by flailing our arms. We are the decision makers. The insects-they are the advocates. Let's become a part of the swarm and help make all decision makers aware of the BIG sign:
