Teen Project Studio +2.0
WINTER 2023
Mondays and Thursdays (4 to 6 PM)
Teen Project Studio + 2.0 is a 10 week, makers program integrating visual arts and digital media for teens and young adults ages 15 to 23 yrs. The FREE program is limited to 15 students and begins in January 2023. TPS sessions will meet twice a week on Mondays and Thursdays (4 to 6 PM). TPS is a unique opportunity to experience and learn about visual arts & creative industries in an interactive and challenging way. TPS is also an opportunity to meet other participants with similar interests and eagerness to learn and create.
Participants are not required to have art or design experience, just the willingness to learn, share, and create to make a difference in the development of projects and Public Art in the city.
Winter 2023 Teen Project Studio +2.0 will explore creatively the theme of Design and Peace. The weekly, hands-on, makers sessions will lead to the production of a collaborative public art project that addresses and foresees a world of peace and harmony.
How can we create in ways that give birth to a better world? Art, design, architecture, when driven by a beautiful purpose, all have the power to change or breathe new life into our perspectives, behaviors, how we move in space, and how we relate to each other. Winter 2023 Teen Project Studio +2.0 will explore this theme of issues-based design, culminating in the collaborative production of a public art project focused on addressing a concern (environmental justice, peace, climate change, democracy, food and housing access, or another cause entirely) determined collectively by the class.
We will begin by practicing 2D and 3D design skills, learning about 1- and 2-point perspective, creating three dimensional shapes from paper using origami techniques and configuring them into assorted structures, experimenting with relevant software, all while examining case studies in our topic: various solutions-oriented projects developed and implemented by artists and designers in the past to positive effect. Students will also discuss issues that affect them on a day-to-day basis, that are important to them, in order to narrow down our area of concentration. We will then explore the neighborhood of West Farms to identify areas that could potentially benefit from a design intervention, with the goal of making a piece to contribute to the space.
Teen Project Studio +2.0
Past Projects
SUMMER 2022
3D INTERACTIVE MAPPING
INSTRUCTOR: Julia Pontés
Participants worked collectively to create a new form of mapping representing the West Farms and the Bronx River, using photography, family and public archives, geology, and geography to create 3D maps and an art installation.
SPRING 2022
MURAL MAKING
INSTRUCTOR: Jonathan E.A. Berry
Participants from Fannie Lou Hamer Freedom High School designed and produced a mural art installation for BRAC’s side entrance wall, under the tutelage of an experienced street artist.
WINTER 2022
FASION DESIGN
INSTRUCTOR: Edwin Reyes
Participants studied the different techniques of both fashion icons and up-and-coming young designers, learning how to create a mood board and exploring texture and pattern in fabrics.
FALL 2021
GAME DESIGN
INSTRUCTOR: Hector Canonge
Participants were introduced to the tools and techniques needed for conceptualizing and crafting their own board games through online interactive sessions via Zoom.
SUMMER 2021
GAME DESIGN
INSTRUCTOR: Hector Canonge
Participants were introduced to the tools and techniques needed for conceptualizing and crafting their own board games through online interactive sessions via Zoom. This culminated in the creation of their own board games that were put on display in the gallery for children and parents to freely interact and play with during one of BRAC’s student art exhibitions.
SPRING 2021
PHOTOGRAPHY AND ACTIVISM
INSTRUCTOR: Chae Kihn, Erica Lansner, Lucy Baptiste, Phoenix Robles, & Caroline Mardok
Various photographers who had their work displayed as part of BRAC’s Honoring Black Lives Matter art exhibition (on view May - July 2021) hosted a lecture series in which they discussed their work, the role photography can play in social justice and activism, and gave feedback on the pictures taken by participants. Each photographer led two sessions each over the course of ten weeks.
WINTER 2021
PUBLIC SCULPTURE
INSTRUCTOR: Karine Duteil, Nadej Hocini, & Caroline Mardok
Participants worked with Karine Duteil and Nadej Hocini of KaN Landscape Design to learn how to design a public art installation, using their own project with photographer Caroline Mardok as a basis. Students took pictures of their neighborhoods in order to gain inspiration to create own miniatures, which were displayed as part of BRAC’s Honoring Black Lives Matter art exhibition that May.
SUMMER/FALL 2020
URBAN DESIGN
INSTRUCTOR: Karine Duteil & Nadej Hocini
Students were introduced to public urban design; following the guideline of the BlackSpace Manifesto, and discussing and designing potential alterations that could be made for a dangerous stretch of road near BRAC, using the pandemic as a constraint. Participants were able to relieve some of their anxiety while creating a beautiful space and reconnecting with their neighborhood and community.
WINTER 2020
GRAPHIC AND TEXTILE DESIGN
INSTRUCTOR: Kathie Halfin
Under the title From Bauhaus to Our House, this session of TPS +2.0 had participants learn graphic and textile design using Bauhaus art principles; Bauhaus being a early 20th century art movement focused on the use of clean lines, bold coloration, and simple geometric shapes. Students utilized both digital and hands-on techniques when creating imagery within the style.
FALL 2019
GRAPHIC DESIGN
INSTRUCTOR: Amy Sinclair
Participants learned about the Bauhaus aesthetic, in all its geometric stylings, and experimented with the style in learning how to design simple yet striking imagery. Students also played with typography, testing alternate designs for the BRAC logo.
SUMMER 2019
GRAPHIC/PRODUCT DESIGN
INSTRUCTOR: Larry Jackson
Participants learned about graphic design and how to apply such principles to create aesthetically-pleasing product packaging. Students took place in weekly critique sessions of each other’s art and learned how to think three-dimensionally in regards to crafting the final product (i.e. a small hand-sized box decorated with their artwork).
SPRING 2019
DESIGN AND DIGITAL FABRICATION
INSTRUCTOR: Art Jones
From April 2019 to December 2020, BRAC worked with The POINT to design and create a series of benches for the Concrete Plant Park in the Hunts Point neighborhood of the Bronx. The year-and-a-half long project had participants learn everything involved with the creation of a public works project; from workshopping ideas within your team, to meetings with the site owners and contractors, to finalizing designs and your budget, to the final production.
Spring 2019 - Conceptualization, Summer 2019 - Exhibition and Production Meeting for Final Three Benches, Fall 2019 - Production and Installation, Winter 2020 - Continued Installation, Summer 2020 - Continued Installation and Painting, Fall 2020 - Continued Installation and Painting
WINTER 2019
STOP-MOTION ANIMATION
INSTRUCTOR: Krisia Ayala
Participants learned about the art of stop-motion. Students visited art museums such as Cooper Hewitt to learn more about visual design, and gain inspiration for how to craft their own short animated film based on community and identity. Participants were able to make use of the 4th floor ceramics space to mold their clay figures, set up a stage and lighting, and start bringing their vision to life.
FALL 2018
STOP-MOTION ANIMATION - INSTRUCTOR: KRISIA AYALA
Participants visited exhibitions such as the Wes Anderson: Isle of Dogs Exhibition at Parasol Projects to learn more about stop-motion animation, and gain inspiration for how to craft their own short film. Participants were able to make use of the 4th floor ceramics space to mold their clay figures, set up a stage and lighting, and start bringing their vision to life.
SUMMER 2018
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
INSTRUCTOR: Larry Jackson
Participants learned about transitional housing (temporary housing intended for homeless individuals), discussed the functions such housing would require to suit their residents’ needs, and theorized how to design a home for this purpose. Students drew basic architectural plans both by-hand and using computer software, and hand-built their own scale models using foam core.
Registration & Fee Information:
Please note that we have a first-come, first-serve policy. Reserve your spot as soon as possible!
All fees must be paid in full at the time of registration. In addition, you can contact us at info@bronxriverart.org or call 718.589.5819
Cancellation Policy: If a class does not meet capacity, it may be canceled, in which case students will have the option to either take another class or receive a full refund.
Unless otherwise noted, all classes include materials and use of professional equipment.
Locations of Classes & Travel Directions:
In-person classes will take place at the Bronx River Art Center, located at 1087 E. Tremont Avenue, Bronx, NY 10460
Virtual classes will take place over Zoom, with links sent out no latter than two hours before class time.