We arrived and were welcomed like VIP attendees, the kids were really impressed by the setup. And I saw that look in their eyes.
On October 9-11, an old school that was no longer in use, was transformed into an art gallery/creative space. The Re:Form School included the artwork of over 150 artists. In the old principal's office was a giftshop in which old children's books had been reshaped into sketchpads. There were also drawings and prints on sale by some of the artists featured in the show. Each purchase from the giftshop was accompanied by a toy from the artist team FriendsWithYou (the young lady working the register gave us a box to split between the kids, thanks again).
The artists FAILE, along with the couple who run one of my favorite blogs about street art, WOOSTER COLLECTIVE hosted the screenprinting workshop in the old cafeteria. The kids were shown screenprinting techniques by FAILE and their magnificent assistant. The kids were able to create a poster to hang in the space and a poster to take home, along with a gift bag that included pencils, notepads, a sketchbook, tshirt, stickers and other creative projects.
While the screenprinted posters dried, we walked around the school and saw the whole exhibit. There was really a lot of work in the space. WK Interact showed some sweet skateboard sculptures in the room with a wooden bus sculpture and floor to ceiling drawings.
Marc Ecko put some presidential busts in the show and the kids knew who all the faces were. There was even art hung in the stairwells, and the neon piece with words from one of my favorite Eric B. and Rakim songs stole the show for me.
I'm into Bruce Nauman and the piece was very reminiscent of his work. A guy told us about all the activities going on over the course of the exhibit, including a breakdance class taught by the legendary Rock Steady Crew, a party hosted by BlackThought and ?uestlove of the equally legendary Roots crew and a hiphop class taught by recording artist Lupe Fiasco was being held on the 4th floor.
We ran up to the room and the session was just starting. The class was for teens but the good people from WorldUp let the kids attend the workshop. I enjoyed everyone but watching Jasmin, Dee and The Boy was a real treat.
They all seemed to be relaxed and participating in the discussion about music with older kids and adults. The group was split into teams for "production" and "writers". Charnier, Dee and Jasmin stayed with the production crew, led by the phenomenal DJ SpazeCraft and were shown how to use different instruments, the computer and other beat making machines to produce the track for which the writing group created the lyrics.
The young people in the writing group were so gifted and Lupe Fiasco worked with them to create lyrics to illuminate and showcase their musical talents.
Extra special shout out to all the people involved in putting together such an impactful event. I was in creative heaven and I was there with my lil ones enjoying all the energy flowing through the Re:Form School.
Viva Los Treps!!!
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