[NEohioPAL] Arts Collinwood Mural Project

[Sarah Gyorki]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 
 
CONTACT:     Sarah Gyorki, Executive Director, s.Gyorki at artscollinwood.org
                        Arts Collinwood
                        15605 Waterloo Rd
                        216-692-9500
                        www.artscollinwood.org
 
 
Mural Inspired by Talented Youth Will Be Legacy to Community
 
The middle- and high-school students in Arts Collinwood’s Portfolio Project are definitely going to leave their mark – for all the city to see.  The mural inspired by the work they’ve been creating this spring in their arts intensive at Arts Collinwood Gallery will come to life on the north wall of the arts center, a visible symbol of the value they believe the arts have in their community.
 
Arts Collinwood launched the Portfolio Project in 2009 with a grant from Cuyahoga Arts and Culture.  The goal is to provide youth opportunities to engage in the arts as a profession, working directly with professional artists in media from sketching and painting to photography and videography, and developing a portfolio of work through the process.  That work will be displayed in an exhibit at Arts Collinwood Gallery, curated and presented by the students themselves.  And it will also be the inspiration for a major public art commission, which the students, along with arts professionals, will jury and select.  
 
“This mural is a major commission, and a gift to our community that will last decades, and serve as a constant reminder of what our students can do, what they can help to bring about, when they’re given the support and the tools,” says Executive Director Sarah Gyorki.  “Art has been a powerful force for change in our community, both in the lives of our individual students and in transforming our neighborhoods.  The Waterloo Arts District is an example of that, and the mural these students will participate in will be a major part of our artistic landscape.  It’s a big responsibility, and they’re absolutely up to the challenge.” 
 
The Portfolio Project students agree.  "People think that kids our age will never do anything.  The art we’re making stops them from thinking about us that way,” says Arielle Luke, a 13-year-old participant in the program.  Her friend, Miracle Smothers, 14, agrees:  "I was afraid of someone not liking my artwork- that I put my heart into. But doing this program has shown me that it’s also about me enjoying creating.”
 
 
Portfolio Project is:
Imane Blaine, 17
Arrielle Luke, 13
Marcel Mason, 13 
Lorenzo Neale, 14
Serita Neale, 13
Miracle Smothers, 14
Destiny Antoinette Allen Ware, 13 
Derek Witcher, 16 
 
They work in conjunction with the professionals of Arts Collinwood Gallery, including Program Curator RA Washington.  Speaking of this first-year group of students, he credits their creative talents, often in spite of a lack of experience and resources, saying, “Their work has grown so much over the course of this program.  I think people will be impressed with the spirit of what we've accomplished.  Despite all of the challenges this city faces, work like this is happening.”  
 
A new pilot program of Arts Collinwood’s educational offerings, Portfolio Project is proving inspiring and exciting, nurturing a new generation of creative youth committed to bettering their community, one project at a time.  Arts Collinwood invites everyone to celebrate that spirit, and the mural it is making possible.
 
Of four finalists selected, one artist will be chosen through a panel process to be completed by the end of May.  The mural itself will be installed in time for an official unveiling at the Waterloo Arts Fest on June 26.  
 
The students’ exhibit, titled “Notes From a Young Collinwood,” will be featured in the Arts Collinwood Gallery May 20-23, with an opening reception Thursday, May 20 from 6-8pm.  The reception is free and open to the public.  
 
For more information about the students and their work and the final selection in the mural project, visit www.artscollinwood.org.
 
 
 
 
Arts Collinwood would like to thank Cuyahoga Arts and Culture for making this program possible.
 
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Sarah Gyorki 
Executive Director 
Arts Collinwood 
216-692-9500 
s.gyorki at artscollinwood.org
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