Being an Artist in the Community: Embracing the World, One Heart at a Time
As someone who has always faced travel anxiety, I was thankful that Arcadia has classes that fulfill the ‘global experience’ AUC (Arcadia Undergraduate Curriculum) credits without having to step foot on a plane. Last semester, I had the opportunity to achieve said requirement by taking “Artist in the Community: Active Day” with Linda Ruth Paskell. The class is very multifaceted – it includes teaching art from different cultures, a personal reflective project titled “My Life,” a plethora of fun yet meaningful art activities, and weekly community service work at a cerebral palsy care center. By the end of the semester, the class felt like a community; we could be vulnerable and honest with one another without fear of judgment. Every project and every discussion taught a lesson, not just about art, but about self and how we interact with the people and world around us.
One project that specifically inspired me to look at the world differently was aptly titled the “Local Heart Project.” For the assignment, each student was tasked with finding and photographing three hearts found in the community. Linda Ruth showed us examples in a picture book: heart-shaped leaves and rocks or hearts in murals or paintings, among other creative examples. The hearts could be found anywhere; it was up to the student to choose a theme for their project.
Because of my joy for writing, I decided to bring my heart-search to the Writing Center, where I work as a consultant. I looked for hearts in the guidebooks and literature collections the center offers, I found a heart on a wall clock by the entrance, I even made my own local heart by forming magnetic words into the form of a heart. Even after finding the three hearts I would use for my project, I still found (and to this day, find) myself looking for and photographing hearts I found all around. My camera roll has slowly been taken over by hearts in water marks left by the rain, or on weird stains on the floor, or in stones or leaves on the pavement.
During presentations, every student talked about their local heart project. The three images were placed in a frame, with attention placed on color, perspective, and story to ensure that the frames were aesthetically pleasing. Hearing the thought, joy, and passion that went into each project was extremely inspiring and beautiful.
This project was, of course, a study on photography: choosing the right angle, perspective, light, and order of the photos was imperative to creating a finished piece. However, this project was about more than physical artistry; I like to say it was about ‘the artistry of life.’ It taught me that, sometimes, I just have to slow down and appreciate the little things in life, the details we might miss when we are stressed or in a hurry. As I search for hearts – even if I am unsuccessful – I find myself noticing things on my daily walk to campus or to a store that I never did. The details of the world can be beautiful and fascinating; we just have to look in the right places. I am forever grateful for the lessons I learned as an Artist in the Community, and I hope to take them with me wherever I go.
