Putting Myself In The Picture
Our World From My Perspective
In our world today, TV, movies, and other mass media tend to magnify the importance of a few famous individuals (TV, music, and movie stars, sports personalities, government leaders, etc) over the rest of us. Sometimes we forget that each one of us is as much a part of our world as anyone else. And in learning about cultures, our everyday lives can provide a more accurate view of our culture than focusing on mass media icons and events.
For this show, we asked participating students to illustrate an aspect of their culture that they felt was worth sharing with their partners. It could be something that was unique or special to their culture or something that happened everyday. It could be something they were proud of or something in their society that they were concerned about. The artist could even choose to portray a culturally revealing scene from the past or the future.
Whatever aspect the artist chose, we asked that each artist place himself or herself somewhere in the piece. The artist could appear as an active participant in, or as a spectator of, the activity or scene he or she depicted. The artist could choose to include all of himself or herself, or just one part (a head, an arm, etc.) The artist was asked to identify where he or she appeared in his/her piece in the artist description that accompanied that piece.
This exhibit includes pieces created by children attending mainstream to special education classrooms working with VSA arts affiliate schools and centers around the world. Look for the VSA arts logo that accompany these pieces.
To learn more about VSA arts, go to www.vsarts.org
Congratulations to our "Art Partners of the Year" Honorees!
C.B. “Meu Guri” - Brazil
Scofield Magnet Middle School - U.S.A.
Luiz Pereira, the art teacher from C. B. Meu Guri, receiving the "International Partner of the Year" award at the opening reception of the 2003 International Children's Art Exhibit at Rich Forum in Stamford, CT.
C. B. Meu Guri is a shelter for abandoned children and adolescents in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Luiz says, "All children around the world who participated in this program are winners but in a shelter, this kind of news is extremely good to our self-esteem and it makes the difference."
Jennifer Ferris receiving the "US Partner of the Year" award for Scofield Magnet Middle School at the opening reception.
Scofield Magnet Middle School in Stamford, CT is an interdisciplinary school focused on Technology and Science with a student body which is diverse in religion, race and economic background. Giesela Homa (the art teacher) and Jennifer were thrilled to be selected as this year's winners. She says, "Thank you so much for the recognition. We are throwing a small party for the kids to celebrate!"
