A CAW integrated art and literacy program at P.S. 192 in Harlem harnesses the energy of K–1 students to build a fantastic city. Along the way, students learn lifelong skills like teamwork and collaboration.
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“Students have been enjoying the storytime aspect of class and love to chime in with great observations as I read. When it comes to making art, they all seem to really love creating and are so focused during the time we have. Hands-on activities are always a source of joy for them.”
— CAW Teaching Artist and children’s book author Maham Khwaja
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“What you guys did this summer was inspirational, and I think inspiration is sometimes lost in this society. Our students will walk by this mural every day and be inspired. And you inspired us, the teachers and administrators, as well. I must tell you how valuable and how important that is to our school community.”
— Principal Charles Reilly, P.S. 368 / The William Lynch School
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“I hope that everyone who sees these murals feel that I am trying to give back to the community. That the people who worked on these murals are people who are just like them, trying to make every day better than the last.”
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“I hope that everyone who sees these murals feel that I am trying to give back to the community. That the people who worked on these murals are people who are just like them, trying to make every day better than the last.”
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“Inwood has changed all throughout its existence. I feel like it is a very nuanced conversation to have, because on the one hand, you do see the good of it. There are nicer amenities being built, like the new library. You have a lot of chain businesses coming into the area and all that is poised to spur economic growth. On the other hand, is this economic growth going to necessarily mean that the culture is going to change? Is what makes Inwood unique going to go away within the next ten years?” — CAW Youth Apprentice Omar Martinez.
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“I hope that everyone who sees these murals feel that I am trying to give back to the community. That the people who worked on these murals are people who are just like them, trying to make every day better than the last.”
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“What I found the most interesting was being so close to people like CEOs and being able to interview them and asking them questions. You got to see where they work and hear stories from the people you wouldn’t get to speak with on just any typical day, which is really cool.”
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We’ve often said that working for Creative Art Works is the best summer job in NYC, and it turns out that a lot of young New Yorkers agree. Of the 115 Youth Apprentices who joined Creative Art Works for our Public Art Youth Employment program this summer, 15 have worked with us at least once before and several of them have worked with us 2 to 5 times! We collected some of their thoughts on why they keep coming back.
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Creative Art Works offered an integrated art-making program in visual narrative at The William Lynch School in Washington Heights. Students in grades three through five built vocabularies, boosted confidence, and learned the elements of storytelling by sculpting their own unique characters.
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Throughout this spring, Creative Art Works Teaching Artists have been engaging young people and their families and friends in robust and event-specific artmaking activities with a number of community partners. While these drop-in activities are fun and require no prior art-making experience, all projects are designed around rigorous lesson plans that align with the goals of the larger community event.
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“The shape of our world is changing. Kids are growing up online and there's something missing in their communication skills. So, our Foundations projects focus on building the skills that students need to be able to engage with each other functionally.”
— CAW Teaching Artist Abby Walsh
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“They had such a strong sense of community, that once one student understood the assignment, they would step up and be the first ones translating and demonstrating the instructions to others.”
— CAW Teaching Artist Joey Jiménez
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“The most successful artmaking involves an element of discovery and play. With art, we actively explore materials – how they work, what kind of vision can we create with them, even the mess we make can be a learning experience. All these small engagements anchor us and teach us how to observe each other and the world we live in.”
— CAW Teaching Artist Colleen Kong-Savage
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“I think approaching the subject matter from a different point of view, from a different angle, is an amazing experience for students. As the weeks go by, I’m seeing the students engaging with the subject matter more. They are excited when they get to class.”
– CAW Teaching Artist Kibrom Araya
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Students at MS 328 in Washington Heights created collagraphs, a kind of print that uses textured materials to create patterns, that tells a story brimming with ridges and grooves. When the work was printed students were often surprised to see a completely different image than what they had expected. This left them with a different understanding of how making art works in real time — the end product doesn’t always come out as expected. Sometimes it’s better.
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A Creative Art Works social justice program at IS 232 in The Bronx centers youth perspectives. Students are challenged to think about their own identity and values as individuals and how they fit into their larger community.
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This fall, CAW is offering Art Around the World as an in-school program to students in grades K – 3 at our partner school, PS 155, the William Paca School. We dropped in on CAW Teaching Artist Carlita Field-Hernandez as she was beginning a unit based on the family portraits of Chicana artist and illustrator Carmen Lomaz Garza. Garza is a good choice for this age group, as her art focuses on family scenes that even small children find relatable, like preparing a family meal or eating watermelon on a hot summer night. The goal for this project is for students to create their own family portrait using pencil and paper.
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