New Logo for the Office

Call it "designer-envy" but since arriving at RISD, I've been struggling to come up with a logo that will convey the mission behind the work we do here at the Office of Public Engagement. The principal metaphor I keep returning to is that of the bridge, linking the RISD community to the people, neighborhoods, and organizations that make Providence such a vital city.

So here is my first attempt at capturing that, albeit in an abstract way:

In other news, the Office spent part of this afternoon over at the Mathewson Street Church, dropping off cameras in preparation for the Arts Reach workshops which starts today. For the next six weeks, they will work together with HeadsUp Arts and adults from a local HIV clinic in a series of painting and photography workshops.

The results of this collaboration will be exhibited at the URI Providence Campus gallery as part of POSITIVELY AWARE, a mixed media exhibit and performance project.

Anyone interested in getting involved in this project as a volunteer artist, please contact Peter at phocking (at) g.risd.edu.

last weekend and this

In the interest of sharing, here is a real short list of projects that the Office of Public Engagement and friends have been playing around with these last couple of weeks.

Parade for the Future - On Saturday, September 13th, a strange blue wave of mermaids, eco-survivors, fish, and octopi descended upon the Boston Common as part of Platform 2's Parade for the Future. Together this collection of artists, activists, and a couple of drunk tourists wound their way through the Commons, celebrating what hasn’t happened yet, notably the impending submergence of the city under water due to climate change. Members of the parade tied blue ribbons onto landmarks throughout the Commons, marking the future high-water line of Boston in 100 years (in some spots, leaving the current landscape 9 feet under water!)

You can view images and read a first-hand account of the parade here. Platform2: Art and Social Engagement is an experimental forum series about creative practices at the intersection of social issues. Platform2 is organized by Catherine D'Ignazio (RISD faculty, Digital+Media) & Savic Rasovic of iKatun, Andi Sutton and Jane D. Marsching.


Block Party! - Andrew Oesch and Jen Cozzens (both RISD alums and mentors at New Urban Arts) are spending this week furiously building cardboard blocks to stage a city-wide free-for-all construction party in Worcester, MA. “Block Party” is an offshoot of “Magic City Repairs” (a cardboard-and-paper city building project carried out in Providence and in Worcester in 2007.)

The impetus behind this large-scale public installation is to invite neighbors, kids, and visitots to imagine what a city block could look like if they themselves were given the bricks and mortar to build.

You can check out their blog all week here.

Ways to engage this fall

Here is a short-list of opportunities for RISD students to start making an impact this fall.

One Day Volunteer Opportunity - The grand community opening of the Chace Center is taking place on September 27th! The RISD Museum is expecting about 8,000 people and needs student volunteers to give 3-4 hours of their time! Jobs might include:

- greeting and directing visitors
- monitoring workshops and performances
- encouraging guests to participate in the day's activities and events

If you are interested in volunteering your time on this exciting day, please contact Cara Blaine in the Education Department of the Museum at cblaine@risd.edu.

Longer-term opportunities

Project Open Door seeks Undergraduate Fellow interested in working with urban teens on their art and design portfolios. This is a 7-week fellowship between September 22 and December 13 with a commitment of 8 hours per week during after-school classes. There is a $1,500 stipend for this position. For more information contact Nancy Sagian at 401-454-6720 or nsafian@risd.edu.

Mathewson Street United Methodist Church and the RISD Office of Public Engagement seek a RISD photography student to lead an 8-week community arts workshop. Working with a group of adults, the workshop will use photography to explore the complexities of living with HIV/AIDS. Interested parties should contact Peter Hocking at 401-413-027 or phocking@g.risd.edu.

Welcome

We've established this blog to document public engagement activities at RISD and in the Providence community. We'll include reflections about what we see, postings of events we hear about and opportunities we encounter.