Milwaukee, Mentors, & Making: A Study of Community Through Art Based Collaborative Research

Hunter Louis & Ally Emrich, “Milwaukee, Mentors, & Making: A Study of Community Through Art Based Collaborative Research”
Mentor: Jessica Meuninck-Ganger, Art & Design

We have been working with the renowned Brooklyn artist, Mary Miss, on the City as Living Laboratory: Sustainability Made Tangible through the Arts (CALL) and WaterMarks projects – incorporating partnerships with the Center for Collaborative Research (CCR), Global Water Institute, the Milwaukee Dept of Public Works, 16th Street Community Health Center, Pulaski Park Neighborhood Association, and the Kinnikinnick River Neighbors in Action. We are offering a series of community papermaking and printmaking workshops associated with the Kinnickinnik riverbed re-naturalization project. As an extension of the CALL and CCR, we are working with community leaders to grow the presence and accessibility of art-based collaborative research in Milwaukee’s neighborhoods by offering workshops and events through the CCR’s Press on Wheels (POW) program. POW was originally a medical van that we converted into a mobile printmaking and papermaking facility. Enthusiasm is growing as a result of our engagement, and we have gathered new partners, including the Milwaukee Artists Resource Network (MARN), the Museum of Wisconsin Art, and the American Civil Liberties Union and its Youth Justice Institute. We hope to further facilitate mentorships between middle and high school MPS students, UWM interns/fellows, and MARN artists in tandem with offering outreach, creative activities, and sanctuary spaces. Expanding beyond our local focus, we will be traveling to Puerto Rico in late March and early April. We will design and build a set of portable printmaking and papermaking labs using repurposed materials to showcase at the upcoming “Puertographico” 2020 SGC International printmaking conference. Following our presentations, we will donate the equipment to schools and arts organizations in San Juan.

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link to poster

Comments

  1. Dear Hunter, Ally and Jessica,

    This is amazing!! Let’s talk about how the PSOA Community Engagement Initiative might help in the future!

  2. Hunter and Ally,
    Working with you has been absolutely delightful! I’m so sorry that social distancing compromised our research and restricted us form working in the studio as well as in the community. You still managed to work within the spirit of the project, and I look forward to seeing how you integrate intuitive mapping and community engagement into your creative processes.
    You’re the best!
    Warmest,
    Jessica

  3. Hello Hunter and Ally,
    I work with the UWM PreCollege Department. We have 15 programs that work with low-income, first generation middle and high school students, and adults in G.E.D. programs in Milwaukee County. Your work mentoring young people in the community and advancing learning through sharing knowledge through innovation aligns with our mission.
    I would like to meet with you, so we can expose our students to your work. Please email me or come see me in Mitchel Hall 106.

    Thank you,
    Rita

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