With my recent involvement in the Art Meets Fashion Project, I started thinking about different ways art could be used to inspire, motivate, and even heal teens. Not unlike most teenagers, the kids at the San Diego Center for Children are courteous and enthusiastic when it comes to learning new things. Given this premise, I started to think about various art forms they are already familiar with and practice on a weekly basis...drumming and drum circles, music therapy groups, the study of blues and song, arts and crafts, woodworking, painting, etc. All healing tools used at the Center.
Therefore, to create an inspirational and new lesson plan, I wanted to expose them to a genre on art that they have not yet worked with in our curriculum. I chose to start with photography. With the help of a professional photographer, we will be teaching various lectures having to do with photography (i.e., A.Adams: Activist and Artist, The History of Rock n Roll through Photographs, etc.) The lesson plan will pair with current exhibits shown at MoPA in Balboa Park and will incorporate portions of the museum's already established power points and lectures specifically designed for educator usage.
After they have completed the photography lecture portion of the curricula, we will move on to learn about various artists/sculptors and eventually fashion designers and fashion. My objective is to give the teens an initial introduction to various art and artists so they will have more of an appreciation of the lesson plan that is ultimately created for the Art Meets Fashion Project.
I'm excited about this new project and will keep you posted of the progress.......
Tina Reyes
San Diego Center for Children
