Last year, The Center for ArtEsteem collaborated with youth to design a radial mandala for The Center—Oakland Unified School District’s garden, kitchen, and education hub (see mandala below). This summer, lead teaching artist Etty Alberto and program assistant Darius Varize returned to teach the design and execution of screenprinting.
During their first class, students and staff were invited to create designs inspired by food justice and their experiences at The Center. Etty assembled these illustrations into class logo compositions and developed four different screen designs to be used for The Center merchandise.
On printing day, the final designs were revealed to the students and staff. They were thrilled to see their illustrations come together cohesively in a single design. Students practiced their technique screen printing on paper before moving on to T-shirts and canvas bags. “I’m so excited to wear this! Thank you so much, Ms. Etty,” exclaimed one student as they finished drying their t-shirt.
The OUSD school board was having their meeting at The Center, and several board members stopped by during their break to observe the students’ work. They were introduced to ArtEsteem’s relationship with The Center, beginning last year when students supported designing and painting a ground mural using garden motifs. This year, students created illustrations for merchandise that will later be the foundational designs for The Center’s upcoming farmer’s market mural. “This is amazing,” says District 2 Director Jennifer Brouhard. “They are very talented.” In addition to learning to garden and cook, this program is giving students the opportunity to develop their skills and creativity as artists.
Shots of the Radial Mandala Process from September 2022
