A BRILLIANT LESSON, A BRILLIANT SERVICE, AND A BRILLIANT WOMAN.
Brilliant Lesson: I've recently been part of a remarkable experience. North Shore Neighbourhood House and John Braithwaite Community Centre received a grant from the New Horizons for Seniors' program of Human Resources Canada. As part of the program, I was hired me to produce a series of creative arts workshops for seniors. The program was to be based on memory; it was to be called Art in Living Memory.
My job was to invent the thirteen workshops that would bring the program to life. The program I designed had a very modest performing arts component and a strong visual arts component. Key program requirements were: all the workshops were to build on the memories of the participants; each workshop had to stand alone; the workshop series was to culminate in a showcase of participant creations; and all the program participants, plus as many of the teachers as possible, were to be seniors. The workshops were held nearly every Wednesday from May until October, and each workshop was limited to 26 participants.
I have written about the intrinsic and therapeutic values of art many, many times, so I expected the workshops to be appreciated by all involved— staff and participants. The very valuable lesson I learned from this program was that the decision of my supervisors to base the workshops on the memories of the participants was a profoundly wise one.
To help you understand the role memory played in the series, here, as an example, is how the printmaking workshop on September 13th was organized. In several workshops prior to the 13th, participants were advised to bring me some of their favourite photographs from their childhood, from their twenties, and from their forties (or whatever they wanted). On the day of the Printmaking Workshop, they got their photos back plus several photocopies of each one in different sizes. We used the photocopies to make transfers of their favourite images onto greeting cards and T-shirts. The participants learned new skills that they loved, but they also rendered some of their favourite "memories" or images into far more visible forms. We "outed" some of their favourite lifetime stories in a way that provoked the participants to retell them over and over again, thereby keeping the memories alive. During the coffee break of the workshop, throughout the workshop and for a long time after the workshop was finished, participants were sharing their memories with each other.Our workshop participants were strangers to one other when we began. As we spent three hours almost every week for four months together, however, having fun and constantly sharing memories, we really got to know one another. Nothing made the success of the program more tangible than the celebratory final workshop. This was the only workshop scheduled for an evening, and everyone who participated in the workshops was invited. The many, many who came brought friends and family to see their presentation and share in the party.
Seeing the workshop participants all arrive so early and all dressed up moved all of us who worked on the program. Then, when the presentation began, we were very moved to see the rapt attention of the audience. Our guests were spellbound by the real stories of real people and it was particularly rewarding to see the children and grandchildren, friends and family of many generations and cultures absolutely seduced by our senior presenters.
So now I know that there is far more to the effective design of creative instructional workshops than I once thought. It is not enough anymore to simply teach technique. I have seen the incredible value of basing creative instruction on personal experience and it has changed forever how I will conduct all future arts workshops that I teach. This is not an approach limited to working with seniors. It is a technique for every age that ensures that whatever you are teaching will engage everyone deeply and further the creation of a trusting, intimate environment in which to create.
A Brilliant Service: The Alliance for Arts and Culture in Vancouver has announced a new initiative that visual artists may value— the Artists' Legal Outreach (ALO). The ALO is a clinic "open to artists in all disciplines to discuss art, entertainment, business and intellectual property law issues."
To take advantage of their service you must fill out an "intake" form (www.allianceforarts.com/advocacy/alo-summary-advice.html#anchor-intake) and send it in to the Alliance office. ALO volunteers will review all submissions and schedule 30-minute appointments for those whose requests can be met by the service. A referral will be provided to those whose questions are for areas of law not handled by the service. (Be sure to include as many details about your legal issue as possible in your intake form and include copies of any relevant documents.) As they say in the service information on the Alliance website: "All issues discussed must be related to your artistic discipline. Some business issues, such as contracts and incorporation, are acceptable."
As a pilot project, the clinic is free. Donations to offset administrative costs are expected. The clinic is open on Wednesday nights, from 5 pm to 7:30 pm, by appointment at the Alliance for Arts and Culture, suite 100 - 938 Howe Street, Vancouver, BC. The service is open to anyone who self-identifies as an artist and who cannot afford to retain legal counsel.
A Brilliant Woman: I imagine there are many Opus North Vancouver customers who remember former North Vancouver District Mayor, Marilyn Baker, who passed away in late October. I came to know her because she was a politician who believed in the value of the arts for her community; she supported my project to build a theatre and art gallery in North Vancouver and she helped me make a success of it. So many people have such distant heroes— Nelson Mandela, the Dali Lama, Gandhi and the like— but I found one very close to home and I was lucky enough to become her friend.
ctyrell@shaw.ca
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