Youth in GAP gather with MMAP staff to celebrate the completion of the summer project.

The Graffiti Arts Project (GAP) Summer 2011 came to an end on Friday August 5^th as the Mural Music and Arts Project and over one-hundred and seventy five community members gathered at East Palo Alto’s City Hall to view and celebrate the graffiti art completed by East Palo Alto youth this summer. During the eight-week program, thirty GAP participants studied principles of artistic design, practiced spray technique, and learned to use graffiti in positive, responsible ways. In addition to teaching youth to express themselves creatively, the GAP program also engaged youth to connect with their communities and cultural histories. In the program’s culminating project, the young artists completed three graffiti art pieces –“Discover”, “Evolve”, and Connect” — to showcase their new skills and knowledge. At the unveiling event, GAP participants came to the stage to explain the meaning of their artwork and to highlight how each piece incorporates colors and patterns from the Latino, Pacific Islander, and African American artistic traditions, respectively. These three pieces will be displayed for the community at the East Palo Alto Library.

"EVOLVE", one of three graffiti pieces that now is displayed in East Palo Alto's Public Library.

After the artists spoke, Chief Ronald L. Davis, East Palo Alto’s Chief of Police, delivered a powerful keynote address, congratulating GAP participants on their creative achievements and expressing his continued strong support for the program.  The Mural Music and Arts Project and the Police Department have collaborated closely throughout GAP’s five-year history. The Department helps fund the program, ensuring that MMAP can continue to provide the opportunity to East Palo Alto youth each summer, and also allows youth to fulfill community service credit through GAP.  In his speech, Chief Davis encouraged youth to continue making positive contributions to the community, and he emphasized the importance of the police and local youth supporting one another. The Mural Music and Arts project extends its deepest thanks to Chief Davis for speaking at this event and to the Department for its continued partnership in the Graffiti Arts Program.

"DISCOVER", inspiration for the youth to discover their full potential.

After the keynote, each GAP participant received a certificate of program completion and a shirt, designed by the youth themselves. The unveiling celebration ended with joyful dancing to the beat of live music by The Vintage Music Collective.

The MMAP staff was proud to congratulate each of the participants involved in the Graffiti Arts Program and glad to celebrate a summer full of learning, creativity, and community building. Thank you to all who came out to support our youth!

"CONNECT", the third and final graffiti piece created by the youth this summer, representative of the strong inter-cultural connections they made with one another and will continue to make.

“Working on the mural I have learned about how to paint but also to trust other people to do good work, as we all work toward finishing the same piece of art and want to take pride in it.”(Lucia Gonzalez). As the Teen Mural Program in East Palo Alto comes to an end with only three weeks left until the unveiling on Friday August 26^th at the Mural Music and Arts Headquarters (2043 Euclid Ave), the youth are seeing all of their hard work come together as they express themselves in a magnitude of ways.

The muralists are working diligently to complete the mural in time for unveiling and seem to be right on schedule as they finish up the “opposite colors” step in the process. As the youth learned earlier this summer “opposite colors” adds a foundation for the final color palette of the mural and helps enhance the final layers. However, the muralists have found that painting the mural has not only taught them about color coordination, but also about working together as muralists.

Imelda and Lucia working together on a portion of the mural.

The youth involved with History through Hip-Hop draw inspiration from the imagery going into the mural to create the lyrics that will go to two musical pieces to follow themes of Vision and how the youth’s vision can affect change in the community. Expansion of vocabulary and how to create “clean lyrics” have proven to be essential lessons as they brainstorm inspirational lines to perform to the community at the unveiling. Ashon Hunter, a veteran member of the HHH program speaks best to this by stating, “it is important to develop lyrics and create depth in those words to convey a message in the music as a means of inspiring change, and that is what MMAP is all about.”

Carla brainstorming inspirational vocabulary to go into her Hip Hop piece.

Additionally, more youth are expressing themselves in the project through the art of dance. The Teen Mural Project’s Dance team will perform two dances at the unveiling and are hard at work as they master the moves and perfect placement. This week the youth have been working on “blocking” where they go over each move step by step to be sure it is crisp and in sync. A member of the dance team speaks with excitement as he describes the dances, “This year we are working on two pieces, both emphasizing footwork and precision, one is a House music piece while the other is Shuffling,” Adrian Johnson.

"Being a part of the dance team in the program has helped me improve and grow personally as I work to master breakdancing," Angel Gonzales.

Seeing all the work come together has been amazing, but even more so is witnessing so many youth in East Palo Alto from different backgrounds and cultures overcome their differences and unify for a common goal.

Facebook, check-in, like it, snap a pic and post it to the wall.  Mural Assistants experienced The Social Network on July 1, 2011.  In the most inspirational manner, Randall DeVaul, Facebook employee, & MMAP Advisory Board member and empowered the Mural Assistants to make moves and invest in their own future through an education.  Mural Assistants explored the campus and talked about the impact that Facebook as a vessel for communication has on the social and geopolitical uprisings .

Randall DeVaul with Teen Mural Assistants

Conversation was passed back and fourth and sheer “Jewels” as Coach Tunde would say we’re picked up everywhere. Signs and symbols from some of the boldest and brightest minds in Silicon Valley will lay next to the monikers and characters of the TMAs.  While being shown through the same work spaces and micro-kitchens as Mark Zuckerberg, not to mention President Obama, Kanye West, and Katie Perry, one couldn’t help but being inspired. Facebook made a mark on MMAP and MMAP Teen Mural Assistants made a mark on Facebook.

Teen Mural Assistants Exavier Rushing and Shadie Shephard sign "The Wall"

If you’ve strolled through EPA Academy High School in East Palo Alto or the Central YMCA in San Francisco in the past few days, you probably noticed a room full of enormously talented, deeply creative young people sharing drawings, lyrics, quotes and personal histories.  These are the 2011 Teen Mural Assistants (or “TMA’s”), whose energy and dynamism astounds.

After a week of training, 21 youth from San Francisco and 24 youth from East Palo Alto were chosen to embark on a 10-week program exploring our theme, “Vision: Claiming our Voice and Building our Future.” During this time, TMA’s will learn local history,  analyze contemporary issues, interview community leaders and experts, and participate in an array of artistic workshops. At the end of the summer, TMA’s will unveil their “Vision” to the community through a final mural and original hip hop.

On Saturday, March 26, 2011, the Mural Music & Arts Project (MMAP) hosted “The Summer of Our Discontent: Police, Community & Healing Post Oscar Grant” at East Palo Alto Academy.  BART Chief of Police Kenton Rainey, East Palo Alto Chief of Police Ronald Davis, Oakland Police Sergeant Tony Jones and Alameda County Deputy District Attorneys Venus Johnson and Gemma Daggs engaged the students in a very frank and open discussion regarding the Oscar Grant case, the Rodney King case, and the murders of four Oakland Police on the same day in March 2009.

MMAP Youth and Law Enforcement

The round table discussion was followed by an artistic competition, where students had thirty minutes to either draw a picture or write a spoken word piece expressing what they learned and felt following the morning discussion.  Members of MMAP’s History through Hip Hop Program performed their original song, “I’m a Leader” and told a story about youth encounters with the police through an improvisational dance routine.

MMAP Youth Noe Rueda with Alameda County Deputy District Attorney Venus Johnson and MMAP Advisory Member Candice Petty

MMAP’s college intern, Kenny Jones, returned home from Anderson University (Anderson, Indiana) today.  Two hours after landing, he delivered a moving and inspirational “Top Ten Reasons To Be Collegiate.”  Click here to see the video presentation.

Kenny Jones Answers the Question: Why College?

Kenny helps a SWAG student explore his favorite reason to go to college. SWAG students will turn these ideas into tshirts that promote the idea of college.

1 – Money Difference (college graduates make an average $20K more)

2 – Get Out The House (do you really want to be in EPA forever?)

3 -Travel with Friends (before college I could count the cities I’ve visited on one hand; now I’ve been to too many cities and states to count and am looking to travel abroad.)

4 – Experiences I would never otherwise have (shooting shot guns during study breaks.  Only the country (Indiana) can offer that.)

5 – College Life (dorms, school activities, sports. . . amazing!)

6 – People you meet (I’ve made life long friends)

7 – Personal growth (the time away has allowed me to grow up in so many ways)

8 – It’s Inspirational (College makes you want to do BIG things in life.)

9 – More Jobs (most good paying jobs want you to have college degrees)

10 – It doesn’t even take that long (I’ve blinked twice and now I’m a sophomore. Time flies when you’re having fun.

The young scholars and artists of the History through Hip Hop program have been on a performance tear, showcasing their lyrical skills and intellect at MMAP’s Black History Month Celebration and Graffiti Arts Program Festival, as well as the Silicon Valley Donor Circle for the Arts Performance Showcase. The second half of History through Hip Hop programming is slated to be even busier than the first, as teens will be fully engaged in music video production, fundraising efforts and collaboration with community organizations to produce their annual culminating show, “The Movement” at Stanford University. Stay tuned every Thursday for the latest news on HHH program activities and performances!

HHH Students Brainstorm Ideas for Upcoming Music Video

East Palo Alto Academy students in the MMAP Elective, Silkscreening With A Goal (SWAG) designed their first shirt promoting leadership and school spirit.  The shirts were an instant success sparking a positive buzz that was felt campus-wide.  A new “swag” resonates throughout the school and a new student can be seen wearing the shirt nearly every day of the week.

EPAA students show off their new shirts, designed exclusively by students in the MMAP SWAG elective class.

Four of the school's tastemakers and trend setters show off their school pride with "EPAA SWAG." Go Bulldogs!

School connectedness increases positive school climate.