How Do We Know if ACW is Actually Employing Art To Change The World?

Art To Change the World conducts surveys and analyzes that data for all their social justice projects.  We collected surveys at our Mississippi Watershed and Management Organization (MWMO’s) workshop, Solar Arts Earth Day, the Mill City Museum Workshop, and Stone Arch Festival.  We identify emerging trends for modification for next time and employ strategies that seemed to work towards moving our participants to action.

In answer to the question, “Is The Pearl art?” an overwhelming majority said “ yes” and cited the power of turning trash into beauty with a large majority stating “I went away with real knowledge and much to contemplate.”

What did they like the Best? The interactive Discovery Drawers were the favorite with the Wings and the Chair following. The Least? Most answered “Nothing” but several said Pearl made them feel sad and one asked the question we are all thinking about.  “What will we do with Pearl after its grand tour?” This is a good question. Ideas?

An overwhelming majority answered that we “did not forget any specific Topic”  but a few brought up important questions: The role of the American Indian on the river and wanting a specific environmental project they could join right then and there. One asked for the basic story of Pearl to be put on an info stand so people could understand the project at a glance. We are creating this signage.

Finally, for the question, “How were people moved to Specific Action?”  Top topics:  “Pick up trash when on my walks along the river, use less and dispose properly and continue taking care of the earth.”

The next Meeting on Zoom is July 17, 2023, at 6:00
ACW is a collective.  All decisions are made at the monthly Task Force meeting. 
All are welcome to join. Post info@arttochangetheworld.org if you would like to attend.

Climate and Justice

By Laura Mann-Hill – ACW Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator.

July is my birthday month and so it’s always been a time of celebration for me in summer, but this past month I have already watched gatherings and celebrations postponed and canceled and watched my own daughter struggle to breathe the air. People who will be most affected by the climate crisis are often those whose carbon footprints are generally very low. As people and artists, we are tied to the health of our planet.  As artists and creators, our work can shape the future of our planet but we must dismantle oppressive, extractive systems and practices if we want to heal our planet and ourselves.
 
Check out my video working with youth connecting art and water on SciGirls: https://www.pbs.org/video/river-rescuers-2du3iz/
 
More environmental justice resources: 
https://www.intersectionalenvironmentalist.com/resources
https://spokesman-recorder.com/2022/02/22/overcoming-environmental-racism-in-mn/
https://www.minnpost.com/race-health-equity/2023/02/black-minnesotans-disproportionately-affected-by-environmental-pollutants/
https://sahanjournal.com/climate-environment/roof-depot-activists-victorious/

Project Management Training Program Set for October 1, 2023

Art To Change The World is accepting Project Management Training candidate applications from Art To Change the World members. The training session will be held at the Solar Arts Building on October 1 between 9:00 AM and 3:00 PM. Each candidate will earn a $50 stipend to help defray child care and/or transportation etc. Lunch Provided. You can pursue an entire degree focused on how to run a project. There are so many moving parts!  The one-day ACW training session we are designing will include Practical Nuts and Bolts in the morning and the Head and Heart curriculum in the afternoon. Six ACW community leaders and businesspersons will also be speaking.  Are you interested in leading a project for ACW?  Project managers are paid from $200-$500 to run a project. Going Forward - all ACW project managers will need this training completed.

Apply here by July 15:  https://www.arttochangetheworld.org/art-to-change-the-world-project-management-training-program
Questions?  Post info@arttochangetheworld.org.

Untitled 8”x 8” mixed media,  acrylic painting with wood overlay $250

Anna Karena  - New Member Spotlight

My daily art sessions intersect with contemplating the universal questions: Who am I and why am I here? It is a dialogue between the canvas and me, much like tango with its intimate call-and-response “conversation”. Working with a vibrant palette of acrylic paints and inks, I approach the canvas with no plan or idea in mind; I work intuitively, making marks or spreading paint randomly. Soon I am in the dance, moving and responding to each new mark and color until I begin to see a direction emerge. Once I see what the canvas suggests, a plan begins to form and I simply follow through. By staying open and present, the painting process is easy and natural. If I start to impose my will on the canvas, however, the dance becomes forced and contrived and the art looks inauthentic or clichéd.

My work is about self-discovery without judgment, and it involves vulnerability. I post my daily painting progress on social media, which exposes my process —and me —before the work is finished. This process engages viewers and invites them to interpret what they see, to relate to it, to comment on it, and maybe even to become attached to certain images or nuances. Often, the painting will change, perhaps even completely, and as such; everyone who participates can experience the transformative process of letting go of the outcome or any part of the process. It’s a journey we all take together.
This path of self-discovery has been an awakening of my spirit with the ability to recognize and respond to the spoken and unspoken messages I receive and am bombarded with daily. I am struck by all the messages of what female beauty is or is not and the ways body shaming can occur in our culture, amongst others. Like my art, each person is a composite of many layers of meaning, and for the most part, we only see the most recent layer. The creative process I’ve chosen keeps my art honest, true, and authentic. The resulting work signifies a process to self-acceptance and inner peace.
I invite you to view my work with an open heart and mind, allowing it to fill you, as you too, find your steps in the dance of self-discovery and acceptance.

Read More: Facebook: Anna Karena Artist   Instagram: @anna.karena 
 

Grand Hand Gallery,  619 Grand Ave, St Paul, MN 55102   
Life on the Spectrum is an Art To Change the World Intern project designed by Rose Cooper.  Read all about the project: https://www.arttochangetheworld.org/life-on-the-spectrum

Rose earned her Associate of Fine Arts Degree from Inverhills Community College and is currently pursuing her BA in Studio Arts from the University of Minnesota. Her primary medium is painting; through her work, she loves to explore the relationship between light and darkness, metaphorically and literally.  By doing self-portraits Rose found a way to process her life and the world around her, while simultaneously expressing her emotions in a way that her words can’t.

“One of the most common themes I express in my work is: no matter how dark things may seem there is always a light at the end of the tunnel,”

Her work can be seen in person at the Red Wing Artisan Collective.

Her website: www.rosesimaginarium.com not only displays her work, but also the work of other fine artists she collaborates with from the twin cities.

Painter, storyteller