Kaitlyn Sandvik
Arts, Entertainment, and Technology Editor
@ksandvikcourant
On Tuesday, February 3rd, the annual Wilburn Fellowship finalists were announced and several student advocates for cultural awareness were given notice to commence projects promoting unity through diversity. An amalgam of students have gotten involved in program this year and several student projects will be moving on as finalists.
The mission of the program is to have participating students create and explore projects which contribute not only to the local community but also offer insight for a broader, international audience. As stated on the program’s website each project should, ¨foster the understanding of humanity’s differences, whether of gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, religion or culture, such that those differences can be respected, learned from, embraced and celebrated.” The program also grants a stipend for the finalists to aid in their process.
Colors Across Cultures
One of the final projects is entitled Colors Across Cultures and was developed by sophomores Bhaskar Abhiraman, Amy Chu and Katherine Zaborowska. “Our objective is to bring diverse cultures together using the universal language of art,” Amy said.
Bhaskar, Amy and Katherine plan on hosting a gallery to display artwork from local artists in a cumulative exhibit. “We’re looking for artists all across the age spectrum in our community to contribute artwork that reflects their heritage,” Amy said. “The project was inspired by the rich history of artwork that exists in each culture and religion.”
After the collective art show, the group plans to auction a portion of the pieces to raise money to donate supplies to school districts with struggling art programs. “New Canaan’s art programs and the Challenges in Art program inspired me personally,” Amy said. “I don’t think I would have the same aspirations to pursue art seriously in the future if it weren’t for the opportunities that were presented to me in elementary and middle school, and I want other kids to be given the same options as me, knowing that it has impacted my life so profoundly.”
The challenge for Colors Across Cultures thus far has been allocating an appropriate gallery space and generating public interest. “Our aim is to bring the community together,” Amy said. “We hope that many students and the adult artists in our community will bring their families and spread the word about why this project is important, it has the ability to affect both our town and communities extending outside of it.”
Freedom Shrine For the Modern World
While Colors Across Cultures uses primarily visual art to expose diversity, the Freedom Shrine for the Modern World group uses historical documents in the context of a mural. The group consists of juniors Kelsey Allen, Zoe Jensen and Innes MacKenzie. “I learned about our school’s plan to have a “Freedom Shrine” created for the high school and thought that this sounded like a great idea,” Zoe said.
As they worked, the group noticed that the majority of documents were from Caucasian men. “I felt that this did not fully represent our country’s strive for equality and freedom,” Zoe said. “If this were to be put into schools and teaching children that these were the sole people creating change and equality, it just would not be true.”
Zoe partnered with Innes and Kelsey, both AP Art students, to create a “shrine” which would better represent American freedom. “We have been finding documents that inspire us as individuals and that have inspired leaders of equality from the past and present day,” she said. “By showing what our country has come from, as well as struggles we are facing today, it can hopefully bring inspiration and education for a sense of community.”
After creating a detailed blueprint and meeting with Mr. Rothman to discuss the potential permanent space for the endeavor, the group is bracing for the potential controversy of their proposal. “We use the work of figures like Malcolm X, Sylvia Rivera, Anita Hill and Margaret Sanger,” Innes said. “Honestly, knowing the community of New Canaan, I would not be surprised if some saw those names and immediately felt the need to try and discredit our project as a liberal or radical delusion.”
The People and Parks of New York City
Sophomores Kimmie Dyrvik, Maggie Owen and Will Santora are working to create a comprehensive documentary revolving around the parks of New York City. “Our project is important because many people under appreciate the value that these parks bring to the world,” Kimmie said. “They offer nature in the middle of a city of cement, people from all different backgrounds and lifestyles come to these parks, and I think that they are one of the simplest forms of human community.”
The weather has been a hindrance for progress on filming thus far, making time the prominent challenge for the group. “We want to interview as many people as possible,” Kimmie said. “We’re hoping for a warm day in March to go in and shoot for our project.”
There are also some projects being spearheaded by individuals, such as sophomore Madeleine Culpepper’s project “Voices of Culture”, a ten part video documentary miniseries and junior John Bemis’ project entitled, “Jazz: The Great American Art Form”, which is a website featuring a thesis essay exploring the transcending nature of Jazz music.
Voices of Culture
Madeleine will be approaching strangers and asking them about their heritage, something she believes is important because it gives insight directly from the source. “It is a clear unbiased source of information,” she said. “Instead of having someone else tell you how other people feel, it is that very person on the screen, speaking their mind, about their life.”
While Madeleine is nervous to initiate conversations without being offensive, she has a vision. “Hopefully, by doing this, connections can be formed between the viewer and the person in the video that otherwise wouldn’t be there, and get rid of some stereotypes at the same time,” she said.
Jazz: The Great American Art Form
John’s project was inspired by a conversation he had with his drum teacher and musical mentor, John Cutrone. “We were talking about Duke Ellington, and he brought up the fact that Duke had it in his contract that he would not play in front of segregated audience,” John said. “I looked deeper into the topic and found a large relationship between Jazz and civil rights movements.”
In drafting his essay, John has been able to utilize the fellowship project as an opportunity to explore his interest in music and it’s history as well as his passion for the importance of Jazz within the American narrative. “It prompted me to closely analyze my favorite Jazz musicians and their records while looking at how they reflected and potentially influenced their decade’s social climate,” he said. “Jazz music is often overlooked nowadays, yet it holds a massive cultural importance in the American identity as it was the first and only genre of music to develop itself completely within our borders, and is thus a wholly unique and original form.”
Because Jazz developed within the United States, it incorporates a variety of cultures that exist here, something John wants to capture with his paper. “Jazz music is a perfect representation of diversity within an artistic renaissance, and deserves recognition as a serious catalyst for social change,” he said. “Jazz is an art form that perfectly embodies the representation of a diverse American culture that the Fellowship looks to promote. “
John believes that his challenge will be creating a website that creates a mood of legitimacy. “The website’s presentation is just as important as it’s content,” he said. “I will also include an accompanying timeline spanning several decades and marking seminal Jazz releases and performances, as well as their relation to the topic.”
While all the projects tackle issues and fulfill the Wilburn mission, the final fellow(s) will be announced later this year and all those involved seem to be eager for what lies ahead. “We are excited to be a part of the Wilburn Fellowship,” Zoe said. “It means a lot to have support from a committee of people that are as excited about this project as we are.”
