Creative Art Works

This summer, Creative Art Works employed over 150 young people through our public art youth employment programs. About half of those Youth Apprentices participated in multimedia workforce programs. This group was sub-divided into cohorts, each specializing in one of three disciplines: documentary filmmaking, animated storytelling, and graphic arts. While all of CAW's youth employment is grounded in social justice, this was especially true for the multimedia teams who tackled subjects including global warming and environmental degradation, police and prison reform, and access to affordable healthcare and housing. Industry professionals and experts on criminal and environmental justice met with our YA’s on a weekly basis to advise them on the issues and help them craft a compelling message.

From its inception, this mural was intended to be a statement piece for the lobby of Bronx County Family Court that would break down barriers and engage the community. One goal was that everyone who enters the building should be able to see themselves represented in the art. If this mural achieves that goal, it might be in large part because the team of Creative Art Works Youth Apprentices (YAs) who executed this mural mirror the fabric of The Bronx. The YAs hope that visitors to the court will feel more welcomed by seeing themselves and their local community represented in this mural and that this will give them a more optimistic view that positive change can happen here. Two-thirds of the YAs, as well as one Teaching Artist Assistant, are current or past Bronx residents. They speak six languages, including Creole, Urdu and Yoruba, Mandarin, Spanish, and English. They have family from Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Ecuador, Haiti, Honduras, Pakistan, Nigeria, Malaysia, and Trinidad. While many elements of the mural were chosen in response to client input, many other elements were inspired by the YAs’ own lived experiences of growing up in The Bronx. Judge Sarah Cooper, who played a vital role in shaping the design of the mural, was delighted with the finished art.

Back in February, Tracy-Ann Reeves, Store Manager for the highly-anticipated Trader Joe’s Harlem location, was exploring 125th Street, trying to get a feel for the place. Trader Joe’s is a “national chain of individual neighborhood grocery stores.” So, Tracy-Ann was looking for local inspiration for the store decor, and she found it at the Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., State Office Building when she first set eyes on the Creative Art Works mural, “How do I See Myself?” Tracy-Ann later recalled thinking, “Wow! This is it!” She was even more impressed when she researched CAW. She knew then that Trader Joe’s had to partner with CAW to create a mural for the new Harlem location. Creative Art Works’ team-based approach to developing public art aligns well with Trader Joe’s stated corporate values. We hired 21 young NYC residents, many of them from Upper Manhattan, to work as Youth Apprentices (YAs) on this project and began our own search for inspiration. First up: a tour of 125th Street. Curtis Archer, President of Harlem Community Development Corporation, introduced the YAs to some of the landmarks of the neighborhood, including the same mural that caught the eye of Tracy-Ann. Next, the Director of Tours for the Apollo Theater, Billy Mitchell (better-known as “Mr. Apollo”) took our YAs on a backstage tour of the world-famous theater where legends such as Michael Jackson, James Brown, and Aretha Franklin once performed. And even though it wasn’t Amateur Night, one of our YAs was invited to sing on stage and everybody got a chance to rub the “Tree of Hope.”

From the August 17th edition of the West Side Rag: “I like the fact that you get to make a project that lasts,” Tunasia Culver, 19, told WSR. This was her second summer working for Creative Art Works. “Last year was extremely hard for me, because my mom passed away in the middle of the summer,” she wrote in the program. “I continued…last year in memory of her. This year, I hoped to make a beautiful piece of art, knowing she’s watching over me.” SYEP serves youths from 14 – 24, who must apply for the 100,000 available spots in April, then enter a lottery, as applications usually exceed availability. Some young people, however, who might be facing certain barriers to employment, such as homelessness, foster care, and criminal justice involvement, “don’t have to go through the lottery system and can be directly referred to the jobs program through a city agency they’re working with,” Chalkbeat reported. For many, it’s their first job. Tynasia, who was cheered on by a woman named Vanessa who called her “my daughter,” said she’ll be going to the State University of New York at Ulster next spring “to follow my aspirations” to become a veterinary technician and dog groomer.