Twin Rivers Unified School District (TRUSD) Residency Program
The TWUSD Artist Residency was designed to put a local working artist and their artwork in front of the districts entire seventh grade student population beginning in February and ending in April of 2023. This was done through field trips to visit the two on campus galleries at Martin Luther King, Jr. Tech Academy and meet with the artist as part of the districts Visual and Performing Arts Program (VAPA).
As the artist in resident, I wanted to select work that expressed and conveyed ideas of identity, show how artists think, and how artists use different materials in their creative process. The two galleries were structured so that the larger works about identity were installed in Gallery 1 while process, inspiration and materials choices were in Gallery 2. My goal and hope was that the work would engaged the students and lead to thoughtful discussions. I was also supported by Maddie Stone, my direct contact with the school district and four artist who acted as docents, Juliet Elise, Matt Shrugg, Zhara Hoosyar and Thom Stone.
Once the students arrived to the large meeting room they were divided into two groups where I introduced everyone and myself. Then, they were given a short presentation about what they could expect. We discussed what art is and also identity. Before leaving for the galleries the students were given rules and expectations.
In the galleries the students engaged with the work silently, then they discussed the work amongst themselves, finally we discussed the work together. My goal in the gallery was to not answer the students questions right away, but to answers them with a question to provoke more thought and discussion.
In total we conducted 35 tours with approximately 1,500 seventh graders.
As the artist in resident, I wanted to select work that expressed and conveyed ideas of identity, show how artists think, and how artists use different materials in their creative process. The two galleries were structured so that the larger works about identity were installed in Gallery 1 while process, inspiration and materials choices were in Gallery 2. My goal and hope was that the work would engaged the students and lead to thoughtful discussions. I was also supported by Maddie Stone, my direct contact with the school district and four artist who acted as docents, Juliet Elise, Matt Shrugg, Zhara Hoosyar and Thom Stone.
Once the students arrived to the large meeting room they were divided into two groups where I introduced everyone and myself. Then, they were given a short presentation about what they could expect. We discussed what art is and also identity. Before leaving for the galleries the students were given rules and expectations.
In the galleries the students engaged with the work silently, then they discussed the work amongst themselves, finally we discussed the work together. My goal in the gallery was to not answer the students questions right away, but to answers them with a question to provoke more thought and discussion.
In total we conducted 35 tours with approximately 1,500 seventh graders.
The Monkey Trail Project began in Sacramento, California and ended at the Manila Village marker in Jean Lafitte, Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, May 2019.
On my trip to New Orleans I left paint can lids with an image of a monkey at various locations along my route. The stylized monkey is a whimsical character referencing a racial slur directed towards Filipino immigrants in the 1920s and 30s. Over the years this character has acquired new meaning. As I've come to identify with it, it’s now a way to symbolically inject myself and Filipino culture into my work.
I see this trail or journey as a metaphor for migration (MYgration) or immigration (I'm MYgration), and the paint can lids as individuals of color, isolated and stranded in their surroundings seeking refuge or a home.
On my trip to New Orleans I left paint can lids with an image of a monkey at various locations along my route. The stylized monkey is a whimsical character referencing a racial slur directed towards Filipino immigrants in the 1920s and 30s. Over the years this character has acquired new meaning. As I've come to identify with it, it’s now a way to symbolically inject myself and Filipino culture into my work.
I see this trail or journey as a metaphor for migration (MYgration) or immigration (I'm MYgration), and the paint can lids as individuals of color, isolated and stranded in their surroundings seeking refuge or a home.