We All Have Stories

Art Portal students at Finger Lakes Community College in Canandaigua, NY spent some time reflecting on personal narratives and experiential influences. We All Have Stories: Exploring Place, Self and Collective Identity asked the artists to channel memories of a mentor that made a positive impact on their lives. They continued on this trajectory to manifest these ideas into visual associations through integrated text and image.

The finished work was placed as two printed murals on campus. Viewers had the opportunity to select an image that they related to based on their own personal history. They used this connection as inspiration to write a few words demonstrating their reaction to the chosen artwork. The written feedback was gathered and incorporated into another generation of visual designs by Design I students at HCC that feature image and text including Find Your Wings and Reach for the Sky.

The totality of this project is featured in storefront windows located at 134 and 108 Castle Street as well as the Smith Center for the Arts in Geneva NY. Storefronts have been generously donated by building owners involved in the Geneva Business Improvement District. The images are in the form of large prints that face outward toward the street.

The projects will be viewable during the reoccurring community event known as Geneva Night Out on the first Friday of every month starting in April 2016.

This process allows students and faculty to engage in a public discourse while acknowledging their place in a social, personal, demographic and academic context through visual communication and artistic expression. Through written, verbal and visual dialogue, our collaborative endeavors, in part, shape the vitality of our connected communities.

Faculty:

Elizabeth Brownell

Students:

Carol Henshaw

Amanda Boser

Kellen Lambert-Vail

Laura Norcott

Katrina Temple

Alex Macchioni

Chelsea Pecoraro

Raleigh Stone

Jon Krocke