We are back from the reservation. Thank you again to all of our supporters! The program was successful beyond our expectations! Kids from all over the reservation gathered as a unified team of artists to learn and create together. In two short weeks the youth created 3 short films, played and wrote music, created an art and poetry magazine, learned a variety of visual mediums, wrote and performed spoken word poetry, created an exhibition full of paintings, drawings, and 3-dimensional art, learned and performed new styles of dance, made original choreography, and participated in a spoken-word music video which we’ll be debuting in the fall.
The greatest reward was seeing how these young people flourished when given the opportunity. Many of these young people have never had the chance to experiment with paint or charcoals, to learn choreography, to share and perform for their peers, to tell their stories to a supportive audience. Many have never had the opportunity to send their voice. They were fed, cared for, and heard.
It was beautiful, inspirational, and completely exhausting! And none of this could have happened without your support. Thank you for believing in the power of art to heal and for wanting to give these young people this opportunity.
What became so clear to us was that these young people need consistency and these programs need to happen more frequently than just once a year in the summer. We’re already planning for our fall event!
Our new website will launch next month and will feature a lot of the work the students did. We will keep you updated!