Art workshop: pushing kids to understand slavery
The eighth-graders seemed to enjoy an art workshop I led recently at the Bellevue Big Picture School. Many of them put in a great deal of care to create backgrounds for their paper dolls, incorporating pictures of their relatives in Civil War-era clothing. With that in mind…
…I told them to hand their work to the student on their left — and let that classmate rip up all but a two-inch square of their collages.
The project was part of the students’ examination of American slavery in the novel Copper Sun. I wanted the kids to think more about non-physical abuses of power and control. It’s easy for them to empathize with the indentured and enslaved characters who barely have a scrap to call their own. That’s one thing.
It’s quite another thing to see yourself as the bad guy in the story: the one causing harm to another for fun and profit.
This is why I wanted each student to witness their work being destroyed, and also to rip up someone else’s collage. Some students rebelled at first, but eventually gave in, giggling uncomfortably as they tore paper.
I also wanted them to think about institutional racism, which the students already witness in their own lives, perhaps at an art museum. I pointed out that museums are not neutral spaces; the organization decides which art is worth exhibiting, and that usually means lots of work by white men. So after the kids used the paper scraps in a final collage piece, I had them create “wall text” that prioritized the student-artist’s imaginary owner, and compared the work to an iconic artist.
There’s a possibility I might teach this class again next year, but don’t tell this year’s seventh-graders. I want them to be surprised.
A veteran to remember
Just a brief note to wish you a happy Veterans Day... and speaking of veterans, today would be an excellent time to learn a little more about a remarkable veteran blessed by St. Felicia.
Photo credit: Diane Venti
Take a closer look at the devotional candles set between the St. Felicia icons.
The candle second to the left honors Cathay Williams, a veteran of the American Civil War. On the back of the candle, I placed a brief summary of her life story:
“We venerate Cathay Williams, favorite of St. Felicia, Patron Saint of Farewells.
Born into slavery in Missouri, Williams is best known as the only African American woman to serve in the US Army during the 1800s. She did so by disguising herself as a man. Williams once said she enlisted because she “wanted to make [her] own living and not be dependent on relations or friends.”
May we follow Cathay Williams’ example and gain favor with St. Felicia.”
All of the devotional candles will be available for purchase on my website on November 17th. In the meantime, go forth and make Cathay Williams (and St. Felicia) proud!
New work: some sort of unity
I had two whole studio days in a row to myself! One was even in my actual studio space! I made the most of it.
I'm going to submit this piece for an upcoming group show that speaks to the theme of "unity." But I have to say the unity I see in the world right now is more the (en)forced variety.
At best I see a clenched, we're-all-just-FINE kind of unity that seems to hold together by sheer force of will, or maybe just habit. So I've titled this collage "Reconstruction," after another (more visibly) chaotic time in United States history.
Photo credit: New York Public Library
From what I've read, historians think people were desperate to forget the horrors they endured during the American Civil War. That war is still the deadliest in American history. Not surprisingly, the South's version of what happened (and why) didn't line up with the North's narrative.
That divide continues here and now. Why else is there a Confederate soldiers' memorial in a place that wasn't even a state at the time?
Jefferson Davis Park, Clark County, WA. ©Lisa Myers Bulmash
No idea if this piece will be accepted or rejected. But it's worth the effort if the collage makes people think about the long-term, widespread unity requires.