(L to R) Jess, Won Ling, Jahna, Emily, Denise, Kaya, Catlin, Katelyn, Zoe and Katie
Over an 10 week period, commencing 10th May, a series of Youth Art design and painting workshops were held at the George Street Hub of StreetNet. Each Tuesday afternoon from 3:30 pm till 6:00pm a group of enthusiastic and highly talented young people 12-15 years came together to create some amazing artworks and pick-up some new art making skills along the way.
In the Beginning........................................aah yes! that's right, start at the beginning and finish at the end....................
OK, participants were introduced to a range of urban and traditional art materials including spray paint, marker pens and acrylic paint with the aim to design and paint an artwork of their choice on a piece of 900mm X 600mm signboard. The only criteria was the designs would need to be positive and no advertising logos.................the rest was up to the artists.
Participants working on their designs
The workshop environment was established to encourage the creative process and provide stimulus for the artists. During each workshop a different Urban/Graffiti/Street Art film was shown on a laptop (set up at the end of the tables) with the movie soundtracks providing an interesting mix of music.
The movies shown included:
- Graffiti Instincts
- Alterego - A worldwide Documentary about Graffiti writing
- Exit Through the Gift Shop
- Style Wars
- Basquiat -1996
- Jean Michael Basquiat - The Radiant Child
The movies also provided a good point of release and inspiration to design, draw and paint. They also helped to instigate conversation about urban/street and graffiti art. The films provided an excellent reference to style, attitude and place. The Basquiat films were interesting especially in light of one being a documentary with real characters, whilst the other involved actors.
The workshop process was divided into distinct stages. With the completion of each stage the participants were able to better understand the value of developing a disciplined approach to their art making. The process also highlighted the importance of drawing as the foundation of the creative process. Firstly, each person developed a pencil image on A4 size paper, then introduced color and finally scaled up their image onto paper of an approximate size to the signboard. This allowed the artists to explore greater detail, work out design issues and to better access what worked and didn't in their artworks before committing to paint. Once the initial design and development stage was completed the artists translated their colour scheme in spray paints and used a range of techniques for the background of their piece, this included feathered spray edging, flat coverage, thin line work, cut stencil, found object stencil and spray splatter.
More traditional painting techniques were subsequently layered over the top of the spray base using acrylic paints and then detail markings were applied with marker pens.
Emily busy on her artwork
Katelyn working on her piece
Katie putting some paint down
Kaya doing some pen work
Won Ling painting
Towards the end of the program Jess organised a trip to the Perth metro area to view some urban art pieces. The day was a great opportunity for the young people to see some fantastic examples of commissioned pieces. It also highlighted the real potential of their art to develop into a source of income.
Jahna giving his approval to a top piece at Headquarters Leederville - Perth
The final images produced by the artists in the program were varied and exciting, with each displaying a unique style. The adage ........the more you exhibit your work the more familiar it becomes and once that happens more people accept it and then it becomes desirable and then people buy it................. hmmmm so that's what happens in the artworld? Yep, the artist sets the agenda by what they produce and by staying consistent and becoming familiar. Oh yeah! a little bit of luck also helps.
Catlin
Emily
Katelyn
Katie
Kaya
Won Ling
Zoe
Jahna
The Murray Urban Arts Project was very successful. At the conclusion of the program we all had pizzas and were able to talk about and assess the program. Participants were asked where they wanted to go next in terms of their art and being involved in future activities. All participants were very keen and expressed their desire to continue to be involved. There was strong interest for a future project that took their involvement and artistic skills to another level. Over the 10 weeks all participants had come to know one another and to appreciate the skills and contribution each had to offer. It seemed logical that they consider a different type of painting project, one that allowed them to combine their artistic skills by working in collaboration. A larger format mural was regarded as an excellent way to achieve their ambition. This would allow the artists to explore the use of signboard as mural panels. The increased size would provide an ideal opportunity to develop a theme and to expand their use of paint and marker pens with greater detail.
In response Jess began making enquiries regarding funding opportunities and partnerships. There is a possibility of attracting ALCOA World Alumina and Country Arts WA funding for an ongoing project, however this time the participants will be in full control of how the project is developed and delivered. In effect they will determine the scope of the project and what they want to achieve. They would also help to make the funding applications. Jess and myself will be there to guide them through the process. I hope it happens........ It promises to be an exciting time ahead.
In response Jess began making enquiries regarding funding opportunities and partnerships. There is a possibility of attracting ALCOA World Alumina and Country Arts WA funding for an ongoing project, however this time the participants will be in full control of how the project is developed and delivered. In effect they will determine the scope of the project and what they want to achieve. They would also help to make the funding applications. Jess and myself will be there to guide them through the process. I hope it happens........ It promises to be an exciting time ahead.
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