Artists Working in Education, Inc. is a non-profit that brings art to Milwaukee area youth. You may have seen their mobile art studios in neighborhoods throughout the summer. The Summer Truck Studio is a mobile art van that visits parks and playgrounds around Milwaukee offering free drop-in art activities for children for the last 16 years.
Last year they unveiled their Summer Satellite Studio, a program pairing professional artists with pre-teens and teens to create collaborative community projects. The Satellite Studio is set up for 1-2 weeks at a specific location as they invite the youth of the community to use painting, sculpture, temporary installation art, dance, printmaking, poetry and more to complete the week's project.
We visited AWE's Satellite Studio at LaFollette/ DMZ Community Garden at 9th and Ring. Andre Lee Ellis is the caretaker of this neighborhood garden and the kids worked on a project painting panels to decorate the sides of the boxed gardens.
Dan Vaughn and Valaria Tatera worked with the students all week. The project was inspired by the 30 Americansexhibit at the Milwaukee Art Museum.
"We wanted a chance to reach out to students that live in the neighborhood," says Tatera. "I think it's a strong program that could bring he community together."
This two-week project ended with a community celebration, including snacks and beverages, and the kids got to see the 30 Americans exhibit, courtesy of AWE.
Check out the summer schedule for AWE's art programs online at awe-inc.org.
*photos courtesy of Troy Freund