Light Your Fire Leveraging Public Art as a Platform for Teen Voices
Sarah Cappo and Amber Mims
Sarah Cappo Teen Programs Manager, Artlab Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
Amber Mims Teaching Artist for Music Production, Artlab Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
Light Your Fire Today’s Session
• What is Artlab? • Introducing Artlab’s Emerging Artists Program
• Reimagining Memorials • Music with a Message • Recap • Questions
What you’ll need for today’s workshop • Pen & Paper • Excitement and Open Mind • Confidence!
What is Artlab? The Hirshhorn’s creative arts programming for youth ages 13 - 19
• Museum-
Centered, Teen-Driven
• FREE and open to everyone
• Access • Opportunity • Collaboration
Emerging Artists The best youth-led exhibitions in the city
• Deep connection with art
• Immersive Experience • Variety of art forms • Impact • Pedagogy • Exposes different
audiences to the talent of our youth
Reimagining Monuments • What is a
monument?
A lasting evidence, reminder, or example of someone or something noticeable or great
• What can
monuments BE?
• What stories are
missing from the public narrative?
Abigail DeVille • New York-based sculptor
• History itself as a raw material
• Brings to light
untold stories of the past
• Explores how
public art can help us understand the past in relation to our present
Maren Hassinger • Harlem-based Artist • Performance art, installation, sculpture, and video
• Work often engages nature and community
• Monuments – honor the social achievements of the community and celebrate the possibilities of humans working together in a natural setting
Public Art as Storytelling • Identify Cause or Story • Write it out! • Why is it import to you? • What are some inspiration words?
• Materials • Visualize it! • Collaging • Sketching • Models
Music with a Message The modern blues structure as a method of storytelling
• Why the blues? • We’ll explore: • 12 Bar Blues
Structure • Notable Artists • Evolution of the Blues • Creating our own Blues lyrics
Think about it: What comes to mind when you think of the word/term “The Blues” Write down words, phrases, emojis, names, or whatever else you think of into your notes.
Blues Structure • AAB lyrical structure • Rhymed couplets • Example: W.C. Hardy’s “St. Louis Blues” A: I hate to see the eve-nin’ sun go down (4 bars) A: I hate to see the eve-nin’ sun go down (4 bars) B: It makes me think I’m on my last go-round (4 bars)
AAB Chord
Structure
Notable Women of the Blues
• Bessie Smith
• Aretha Franklin
• Mary J. Blige
• African American
• African American
• African American
singer/songwriter of the 1920’s
singer/songwriter of the 1960’s
singer/songwriter of the 1990’s
Songwriting Wheel
Try it out yourself! Which method of exploration resonates with you?
Reimagining Memorials • Select your cause
• Identify Inspiration Words • Materials? • Visualize It! • Gather inspiration • • •
images Make a collage Sketch Make a model
Music with a Message • Remember your AAB lyrical structure
• Keep it simple • Think of recurring theme(s)
• Use what you know • Confidence, Confidence, Confidence!
Recap! • Opportunities for deep connections with art
• Co-creating spaces
where teens can truly connect with their voice
• Storytelling through
monuments and music
Questions? • Learn more:
learninglab.si.edu
• Contact us! • Sarah Cappo, Teen Programs Manager, CappoS@si.edu or HMSGArtlab@si.edu
• Amber Mims, Teaching Artist for Music Production, HMSGArtlab@si.edu