This project will:

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• Allow numerous students from four countries to discuss their cultural perspective on a given topic on 10 canvases (at least 5  students on each)

• Unite people across different cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds both in the States and abroad (participating schools: St. Charles High School-in St. Charles, MO, Christian Activity Center-in East St. Louis, IL, Schiller-Gymnasium-in Ludwigsburg, Germany, Charters-in Sunningdale, UK, and Kombolcha Primary School-in Kombolcha, Ethiopia)

• Breakdown the barriers created by geographic isolation

Description

What is the human experience? Sixty-six students (ages 12-18) from four countries across diverse backgrounds discussed the topic through a cross-cultural art project. Participating countries include: the U.S., Germany, U.K, and Ethiopia. Students contemplate: love, relationships, religion, community, school/education, nationality, holidays, storytelling, music, and traditions. The finished works were then shared in all of the communities through a traveling art show and printed into books for the students to keep and share with others. Join the conversation!

 

I hope all who come across this project will engage in the dialogue presented by the artists and seek opportunities to continue the conversation. Depending on the success of the project, I hope to extend it to countries in Asia and South-America. 

The above work is an example of a theme exploring storytelling created by students from England, Germany, Ethiopia, and the U.S.  (the countries listed along the sides of the image correspond with the student's country that painted, collaged, or drew that section). Ten themes were explored in this manner allowing each artist to create a dialogue with the observer, and other participants, about the relevance of the imagery selected for the given theme.