One of the unique aspects of community arts-making that
appeals to me is the opportunity presented for reflection and discourse, which
can lead to learning. In Transformative Learning: Theory to
Practice, Jack Mezirow (1997) suggests that, “becoming critically reflective of
one’s own assumptions is the key to transforming one’s taken-for-granted frame
of reference, an indispensible dimension of learning for adapting to change”
(p. 9). He goes on to describe the
situations that can be created by an educator to promote effective
discourse. As I read this, it occurred
to me that some of these ideal conditions of discourse described by Mezirow can
be equally effective at promoting discourse through community arts-making.
Free From Coercion with Equal opportunity to Participate
I attended several Brazilian sarau’s during the past several
years, which are informal art-making gatherings often held in homes, that may
involve music, dance, storytelling, as well as presentations of visual art or
found objects. I was invited to my first
sarau by a classmate in Collaborative Symposium – Community Arts Making at
Lesley University several years ago. An
appealing aspect of a sarau is that participation in the art-making is
voluntary and there is no pressure to perform.
At the sarau’s I attended, participants who chose not to perform were as
deeply engaged as everyone else and appreciated being invited to participate
even though they chose not to. The image above shows the tragic and comedic masks of the theatre, the palette of the artist and the note of the musician, above the words, Sarau de Artes & Cultura.
Having Full Information.
Community arts-making events often include an ‘awareness or
promotion’ component, providing both art and information at the same time. For example, in April the Fitchburg Cultural
Council hosted an open mike for musicians and vocalists at a local
restaurant. During the event, council
members made several announcements explaining how to apply for LCC grants and
handed out materials that described the programs and services offered by the
council. In fact, I learned later that
the purpose of the event was in fact to promote the work of the council and
clarify how easy it is to apply for a grant.
Of course, having full information also implies having access to
conflicting points of view depending on the situation.
Empathetic and Willing to Listen

Another great community art making event I participated in
was the CityHeArt Art Show, which is an annual visual art show and sale by
clients of local social services which, support homeless individuals.
Many of these organizations have implemented
art-making programs for their homeless clients and this public event is
designed to showcase their client’s talents and provide a source of revenue for
them based on the sale of their artwork.
I volunteered as a musician at this event and it opened my eyes to not
only the talents of the artists, but also to their personalities, to their ways
of art-making and being.
I saw them
appreciate each other’s art.
This event
promoted empathy for this marginalized group by just ‘being an art show. ’ The
event organizers made the decision with some of their marketing materials not
to promote the event as a homeless art show for this very reason – as one
organizer explained it to me, "They are artists and deserve to be treated as
such." The image at the right shows one of the musicians, Mallory Cormier, viewing the handmade, colorful fabric artwork being bresented for sale.
References
Mezirow, J. "Transformative Learning: Theory to Practice." New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education. 1997, 74 (Summer), (5-12).
Thanks so much for your wonderful post about Transformative Learning Theory and community arts events you have participated in. I so much admire all you have done to contribute to these efforts. Each of these events help participants transform their frames of reference regarding different groups. I love that the art show for homeless artists was just billed as an art exhibit and the word homeless was not mentioned. Just so heart warming.... Wendy
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