Drawing Together offers communities a comprehensive approach to addressing health concerns through creative and artistic techniques. The health outcomes and indicators are determine by the communities we work with. Below is a summary of some of our past community-based projects.
Connections is the fifth community-based project.
This project was produced in partnership with the Southern California Children’s Museum in Pasadena, CA. Four artists, working in teams of two, will create two installations for this audience. The artists include: Mary Duman, Emily Gallagher, Amy Bauer, and Karen Godfrey. The goal of the project is to explore our connection to each other and the planet, with the goal of addressing social isolation. Research has found that nearby nature can help us feel connected by offering socially isolated people an alternative way of feeling connected and overcoming the effect of low social connectedness. This project is made possible by an Impact Grant from the California Arts Council, a state granting agency. The work is viewable at the museum from March 29th through May 2nd. The community is also invited to our Spring Open House event, which is free and open to the open. You are RSVP here to receive updates, or just show up.
Visitors, V.2 is our fourth community-based project.
This project is the second part of a two-part series of workbooks, art lessons, and art exhibition that will be presented spring of 2024. This community project will focus on the stories behind our relationship to our environment. This project’s aim is to provide cultural exchange between regional contemporary visual artists and public elementary students in the rural community of Wrightwood by addressing the topic of environmental stewardship. The artist as part of the project include: Mary Duman, Dalilia Mendez, Renee Rizeman, and Vojislav Radovanovic. The public is invited to the art exhibition and spring open house on May 4th from 12:00-4:00pm. The event is free, but you get RSVP here to get updates.
Visitors, V. 1 is our third community-based project.
This is the first of a 2-part series of workbooks, art lessons, and art exhibitions that will be presented in the Spring of 2023. This community project will focus on the interconnectedness of humans and nature through the lens of natural systems that support life on this planet. People are essentially visitors on Earth, and no one person is responsible for the environment; however, we all have a unique relationship with it. Therefore, a collective effort must be cultivated to respect and care for nature.
Picture Me Here, is our second community-based project, and first in Wrightwood, CA.
The goal of the project was to expose the rural community to a diverse group of contemporary artists. The project included a series of art assemblies for K-5 grade students at Wrightwood Elementary, a workbook, an exhibition with artist talk, and an adult workshop.
The exhibition opened on April 30, 2022 (closed on May 21, 2022) at the Wrightwood Arts Center in Wrightwood, CA. The exhibting artists included Teresa Flores, Ching Ching Cheng, Reyna Rivera, and A’Kailah Byrd-Greene. Their work included included painting, video work, textile, drawing, glasswork and more.
A Mindfulness Drawing Tool for Teens was our 1st community-based project.
The format developed during the pandemic uses a workbook designed to address teen isolation and suicidal ideation, as health indicators identified by the Pasadena Health Department in 2019. It uses drawing exercises through the lens of mindfulness. Both drawing and mindfulness are practices that can help with coping and emotional regulation, no matter who you are, where you live, or what you’re going through.
This project took place in 2020 and offered virtual workshops during the pandemic. Other community based organizations helped us distribute over 150 workbooks to teens in the Pasadena area.