Art Action Toolbox Case Study: Stencils

CASE STUDY

stencil art

Ennismore Retreat Centre Mayfield, Cork Art Encounter Summer 2005

MCAC ART ACTION TOOLBOX: CASE STUDY of STENCIL ART

Theme: Equality and Dreams

Mayfield Arts Newbury House Art Action Toolbox: Case Study Stencil Art Art Encounter 2005 background Art Encounter 2005 was an artistic exchange which saw young artists from Cork, Nicaragua and Colombia, living and working together in Cork for three weeks. Their work was exhibited to the public in Mayfield and in the City centre.

The young people were encouraged to explore issues of equality, while sharing cultural experiences and working together on a public art project.

They used painting, sculpture, photography and graffiti art to explore the dreams of young poeple all over the world and how these relate to the Millenium Development Goals. The young people had clear messages that they communciated in very innovative ways.

This is a case study of the graffiti stencil project that took place during Art Encounter 2005 with young participants from Mayfield Arts, Ogra Chorcai, NIcaragua and Colombia.

Participants: Young people from Mayfield Arts Newbury House Ogra Chorcai Funarte (Nicaragua) Centro Colombo Americano (Colombia)

HOW DID WE DO IT? Step 1: Exploring the theme

MCAC ART ACTION TOOLBOX: CASE STUDY of STENCIL ART

The group explored the theme of equality and dreams by brainstorming, discussion and debate activites and forum theatre. Information on forum theatre by Theatre of the Oppressed can be found here: www.theatreoftheoppressed.org/ The group used the photographys they took in the theatre activities to turn into stencils by using the Photoshop Cutout tool as described in the Stencil Technique. They created slogans to accompany their images from the discussion and brainstorming activities and exploration of the theme. They then printed the images and text onto acetate and proejcted them onto card taped to a wall.

Step 2: Creating the Stencils The participants then cut out the black parts of the stencil from the card using cutting blades and cutting boards. They made bridges to hold the white parts together so that the stencil wouldn’t fall apart. If a mistake is made it can always be fixed by adding some masking tape and paper to make a bridge. Most of the stencils were one colour stencils, but if you want two colours you need to cut out two stencils that fit into each other, one for each colour. The group then tested their stencils by spraying onto paper to see what they looked like and if they wanted to make any changes.

Step 3: Exhibiting the Work The participants began designing the layout of their stencil boards, including a background of free-hand spraypainting and an overlay of the stencil images and slogans. They began spraying outdoors once the design was finished and had fun creating the vibrant graffiti boards.

The slogans were an important element to communicate their messages. These included, ‘Solidarity is the way to peace,’ and ‘Due to recent cutbacks....’

The graffiti boards were exhibited in Ennismore Retreat Centre Mayfield and in Cork City Centre during Art Encounter 2005.

IMAGES OF THE FINISHED WORK

MCAC ART ACTION TOOLBOX: CASE STUDY of STENCIL ART

Equality is an issue all over the world and young people need to have a space to discuss it.

Video of this graffiti project: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmFOQpSAsS8&feature=player_embedded