Sunday, September 28, 2008
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Week of April 7
Mariya and Chen - Minimum
-very visual workshop
-started with blind contour drawings, then moved onto non-blind contour drawings, then they passed out contour drawings done previously by other women in SPACE
-they discussed what it means to portray a person with different lines
-they passed out magazines, and the prompt was to find a picture to re-draw with the materials available (charcoal, pastels, etc.)
-went well, small group
Ariel and Becky - Medium
-another largely attended workshop (24 women), so in the interest of minimizing discipline issues and creating an atmosphere conducive to free, uninterrupted creative expression, we created a prompt that forces each person to work independently and create a piece of introspective work.
-prompt: write a stream-of-consciousness piece on any of the following prompts, never lifting your pen: describe a time when you felt aware of a higher power, describe an out-of-body experience, what do you feel like when you're naked, when do you feel most powerful, do you live up to your parents' expectations, and how do you see the world?
-some women started talking after a bit, but everyone wrote, and most women shared. The workshop went really well, especially compared to past weeks of disrespectful atmospheres (1. monologues expressing something you're passionate about and 2. creating and discussing our ideal government)
-very visual workshop
-started with blind contour drawings, then moved onto non-blind contour drawings, then they passed out contour drawings done previously by other women in SPACE
-they discussed what it means to portray a person with different lines
-they passed out magazines, and the prompt was to find a picture to re-draw with the materials available (charcoal, pastels, etc.)
-went well, small group
Ariel and Becky - Medium
-another largely attended workshop (24 women), so in the interest of minimizing discipline issues and creating an atmosphere conducive to free, uninterrupted creative expression, we created a prompt that forces each person to work independently and create a piece of introspective work.
-prompt: write a stream-of-consciousness piece on any of the following prompts, never lifting your pen: describe a time when you felt aware of a higher power, describe an out-of-body experience, what do you feel like when you're naked, when do you feel most powerful, do you live up to your parents' expectations, and how do you see the world?
-some women started talking after a bit, but everyone wrote, and most women shared. The workshop went really well, especially compared to past weeks of disrespectful atmospheres (1. monologues expressing something you're passionate about and 2. creating and discussing our ideal government)
Week of April 7, 2008
Britt and Katie - Medium
-workshop went really well, but it was shorter than usual because Katie's picture had to be taken (the shorter workshop created a get-down-to-business attitude).
-handed out worksheets helping people to create fictitious characters: at the top of the page, Britt and Katie typed an emotion. The prompt was to write a story about a fictitious character in the specific emotional state so that by the end, the character experienced the opposite emotion.
-When the group shared, all the women included the height, age, weight, and eye color in their character descriptions--clearly linked to the information to which their identities are minimized in the prison system.
Anna and Molly - Medium
-short workshop, about 25 minutes, because they were stuck outside by the officers for whatever reason
-they told the women to start thinking about a prompt as Homework for next week: create a story about the beginning of the world and the end of the world
-the women were really excited, and some of them said they needed the extra week's time to address the question fully
Courtney and Nina - Minimum
-they started by playing a piece of spoken word poetry
-prompt: write (in any form) about a political or social issue that is important to you
-one woman wrote about abortion from a pro-choice stance, which another woman disagreed with, and the two engaged in a mini-debate
-Nina considered this the best workshop yet
-Courtney noticed that there were a bunch of new faces at the workshop, entirely white women
-workshop went really well, but it was shorter than usual because Katie's picture had to be taken (the shorter workshop created a get-down-to-business attitude).
-handed out worksheets helping people to create fictitious characters: at the top of the page, Britt and Katie typed an emotion. The prompt was to write a story about a fictitious character in the specific emotional state so that by the end, the character experienced the opposite emotion.
-When the group shared, all the women included the height, age, weight, and eye color in their character descriptions--clearly linked to the information to which their identities are minimized in the prison system.
Anna and Molly - Medium
-short workshop, about 25 minutes, because they were stuck outside by the officers for whatever reason
-they told the women to start thinking about a prompt as Homework for next week: create a story about the beginning of the world and the end of the world
-the women were really excited, and some of them said they needed the extra week's time to address the question fully
Courtney and Nina - Minimum
-they started by playing a piece of spoken word poetry
-prompt: write (in any form) about a political or social issue that is important to you
-one woman wrote about abortion from a pro-choice stance, which another woman disagreed with, and the two engaged in a mini-debate
-Nina considered this the best workshop yet
-Courtney noticed that there were a bunch of new faces at the workshop, entirely white women
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Week of March 3rd
Britt and Katie - Medium
-The two got a late start, but were able to start off the workshop well
-Started with a conversation, which took up half the workshop, answering the question: If you could turn the prison into anything else, what would it be? How would you change it? Describe.
-K + B prefaced the convo by recognizing that individuals may not want to write about prison.
-Then, everyone individually wrote their ideas and presented them.
-Was a really cool workshop, good ideas came up, generally went well
-Some ideas included: place for children, interior redesign, mini-town with a theater, spa, and storefronts, animal zoo, hotel with gourmet food
Mariya and Chen - Minimum
-The two handed out a passage from Jane Eyre which described a red room.
-Then, they looked at writing by Gaston Bachelard who discusses the difference between spaces in a house in terms of their associated emotional experience.
-Instructions: write through a house, describing it room by room (break down the space). Then, pick an object in a room, take it out of the house, and write from the object's perspective from the outside.
Anna and Molly - Medium
-The two gave out a list of words, and instructed everyone to pick a few words.
-Then, they broke into 2 groups, and each group had to write a myth collaboratively using the words, then perform the myth
-The workshop was incredible, and Molly's favorite this year
Nina and Courtney - Minimum
-Theme of mirrors, beginning with a free-write asking "What do you see in the mirror?"
-Then, they all played the mirror game, wherein you mirror a partner's every motion and expression to the extent that others can't guess who the leader is
-Then, they wrote plays in groups of 3, focusing on dialogue. Then, the groups performed the dialogue.
-The workshop went really well, with great dialogue.
Becky - Medium
-Ariel was at a conference, so I went in alone. There was a different CO, and for whatever reason only one wing came down - only four women came.
-Collective poetry, circa last semester with Britt. Everyone has a page numbered 1-6, with line 1 "Underneath it all". Then, the paper is passed from person to person, with each writing every other line of the poem.
-After the first poem, we discussed our thoughts about each, including favorites, improvements to make...etc.
-Then, we did another poem with 10 lines, and the first line read "Set in Motion".
-The workshop was fantastic, and everyone participated and offered comments.
An example poem:
-The two got a late start, but were able to start off the workshop well
-Started with a conversation, which took up half the workshop, answering the question: If you could turn the prison into anything else, what would it be? How would you change it? Describe.
-K + B prefaced the convo by recognizing that individuals may not want to write about prison.
-Then, everyone individually wrote their ideas and presented them.
-Was a really cool workshop, good ideas came up, generally went well
-Some ideas included: place for children, interior redesign, mini-town with a theater, spa, and storefronts, animal zoo, hotel with gourmet food
Mariya and Chen - Minimum
-The two handed out a passage from Jane Eyre which described a red room.
-Then, they looked at writing by Gaston Bachelard who discusses the difference between spaces in a house in terms of their associated emotional experience.
-Instructions: write through a house, describing it room by room (break down the space). Then, pick an object in a room, take it out of the house, and write from the object's perspective from the outside.
Anna and Molly - Medium
-The two gave out a list of words, and instructed everyone to pick a few words.
-Then, they broke into 2 groups, and each group had to write a myth collaboratively using the words, then perform the myth
-The workshop was incredible, and Molly's favorite this year
Nina and Courtney - Minimum
-Theme of mirrors, beginning with a free-write asking "What do you see in the mirror?"
-Then, they all played the mirror game, wherein you mirror a partner's every motion and expression to the extent that others can't guess who the leader is
-Then, they wrote plays in groups of 3, focusing on dialogue. Then, the groups performed the dialogue.
-The workshop went really well, with great dialogue.
Becky - Medium
-Ariel was at a conference, so I went in alone. There was a different CO, and for whatever reason only one wing came down - only four women came.
-Collective poetry, circa last semester with Britt. Everyone has a page numbered 1-6, with line 1 "Underneath it all". Then, the paper is passed from person to person, with each writing every other line of the poem.
-After the first poem, we discussed our thoughts about each, including favorites, improvements to make...etc.
-Then, we did another poem with 10 lines, and the first line read "Set in Motion".
-The workshop was fantastic, and everyone participated and offered comments.
An example poem:
Underneath it all
Became the moon & earth
Through the leaves and dirt
With the wind blowing on my shirt
Away from the mess of nature and into the sun
I turn and look up, put my shades on and Run. Run. Run.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Week of Feb. 25
Chen and Mariya: Minimum
-8 women in attendance, all excited to start the new semester
-Began with free write on portraits and the meaning of portraiture (ie: one person depicting another)
-Presented color images from artist Kehinde Wiley and everyone shared responses to his art, discussed the implications of his art
-2 women dominated the conversation; C + M unsure of how to mediate it
-Writing: Pick 5 words from your free write that describe his work, and 5 words that do not describe his work
-Visual art: collages covered in pastels
-People did interesting things, and they tended to choose pictures that had meaning to them
-Chen and Mariya collected the work at the end
Katie and Britt
-Katie was mysteriously deleted from the DOC system, so they couldn't go in.
Anna and Molly: Medium
-10-12 women, big group, unwieldy
-Prompt: write a story, or draw something, or both, from the perspective of your feet
-Began workshop by playing the song "Red Right Ankle" (Decemberists), and the women overwhelmingly hated it. Many commented that it was "a song for 8-year-olds". This set the tone for the workshop.
-major issues with the women acting childish: one woman was clearly loopy and randomly danced, another jumped up and down in the corner...
-One woman took most of the tissue paper to do her own stuff, and others copied. Anna was particularly frustrated with this, and the woman eventually bargained with Anna so she could get more tissue paper. In our SPACE meeting later, Anna raised the issue of wasting materials.
-Anna and Molly didn't try to go around and share at the end.
Nina and Courtney: Minimum
-6 women, first workshop, focused on acting
-prompt: think about one day in your life, write about it, then walk around the room and interact with people as if it were that day.
-people got into it, and the vibe was positive, funny, and silly
Becky and Ariel: Medium
-about 8 women in attendance
-prompt: Write and illustrate a mini children's book. After looking at an example of an illustrated kids' book, we brainstormed characters, topics, plots, then wrote. After writing, we separated the lines page by page and added illustrations. We had pre-cut string for binding.
-Most people made books, and some worked in pairs. In particular, one woman did not do a book and distracted another woman from making a more detailed book of her own.
-All around, it was moderate, and no one was especially enthused or challenged by the workshop.
-8 women in attendance, all excited to start the new semester
-Began with free write on portraits and the meaning of portraiture (ie: one person depicting another)
-Presented color images from artist Kehinde Wiley and everyone shared responses to his art, discussed the implications of his art
-2 women dominated the conversation; C + M unsure of how to mediate it
-Writing: Pick 5 words from your free write that describe his work, and 5 words that do not describe his work
-Visual art: collages covered in pastels
-People did interesting things, and they tended to choose pictures that had meaning to them
-Chen and Mariya collected the work at the end
Katie and Britt
-Katie was mysteriously deleted from the DOC system, so they couldn't go in.
Anna and Molly: Medium
-10-12 women, big group, unwieldy
-Prompt: write a story, or draw something, or both, from the perspective of your feet
-Began workshop by playing the song "Red Right Ankle" (Decemberists), and the women overwhelmingly hated it. Many commented that it was "a song for 8-year-olds". This set the tone for the workshop.
-major issues with the women acting childish: one woman was clearly loopy and randomly danced, another jumped up and down in the corner...
-One woman took most of the tissue paper to do her own stuff, and others copied. Anna was particularly frustrated with this, and the woman eventually bargained with Anna so she could get more tissue paper. In our SPACE meeting later, Anna raised the issue of wasting materials.
-Anna and Molly didn't try to go around and share at the end.
Nina and Courtney: Minimum
-6 women, first workshop, focused on acting
-prompt: think about one day in your life, write about it, then walk around the room and interact with people as if it were that day.
-people got into it, and the vibe was positive, funny, and silly
Becky and Ariel: Medium
-about 8 women in attendance
-prompt: Write and illustrate a mini children's book. After looking at an example of an illustrated kids' book, we brainstormed characters, topics, plots, then wrote. After writing, we separated the lines page by page and added illustrations. We had pre-cut string for binding.
-Most people made books, and some worked in pairs. In particular, one woman did not do a book and distracted another woman from making a more detailed book of her own.
-All around, it was moderate, and no one was especially enthused or challenged by the workshop.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Feb 20 and 21
Anna and Molly
It was the pair's first time in Medium, and their first workshop focused on a poem about the human body. The directions were to verbally or visually represent a mark on their body, such as a birthmark or a scar. Anna thought that the workshop went well and that the six to eight women there enjoyed it. However, Anna mentioned the issue of incomplete participation by all the women - some just did not do it. How can SPACE facilitators deal with lack of participation? How formal is the workshop? Somewhere between a disciplined art class and an informal workshop...? Molly and Anna are planning to compile an attendance sheet every week as well as have the women compile their work into a super-glued collection book that they can keep for themselves.
Ariel and Becky
Ariel and I led our second workshop in Medium, and about 15 women were present. We brought in 30 photos of people in different scenes, including a cop pulling someone over, an LA county prison, Marilyn Monroe, an old woman, etc. Each person chose one photo, then prepared to write a short fictional story about the people in the picture. We began by having everyone brainstorm characters, including names, backgrounds, traits, etc, then brainstormed the plot and major event timeline. Then we wrote for about half an hour, then shared. All but 2 women shared their stories. About 4 of the stories were about prostitutes, in part because there were enough photos of women and/or prostitutes to choose from, and in part because the women did choose those photos over the many others available. At least one woman had an entirely non-fictional story about a family member, and one woman broke down crying after sharing her story. One woman commented at the end that "We thought this was gonna suck, but it was awesome."
It was the pair's first time in Medium, and their first workshop focused on a poem about the human body. The directions were to verbally or visually represent a mark on their body, such as a birthmark or a scar. Anna thought that the workshop went well and that the six to eight women there enjoyed it. However, Anna mentioned the issue of incomplete participation by all the women - some just did not do it. How can SPACE facilitators deal with lack of participation? How formal is the workshop? Somewhere between a disciplined art class and an informal workshop...? Molly and Anna are planning to compile an attendance sheet every week as well as have the women compile their work into a super-glued collection book that they can keep for themselves.
Ariel and Becky
Ariel and I led our second workshop in Medium, and about 15 women were present. We brought in 30 photos of people in different scenes, including a cop pulling someone over, an LA county prison, Marilyn Monroe, an old woman, etc. Each person chose one photo, then prepared to write a short fictional story about the people in the picture. We began by having everyone brainstorm characters, including names, backgrounds, traits, etc, then brainstormed the plot and major event timeline. Then we wrote for about half an hour, then shared. All but 2 women shared their stories. About 4 of the stories were about prostitutes, in part because there were enough photos of women and/or prostitutes to choose from, and in part because the women did choose those photos over the many others available. At least one woman had an entirely non-fictional story about a family member, and one woman broke down crying after sharing her story. One woman commented at the end that "We thought this was gonna suck, but it was awesome."
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Valentine's Day 2008: Self Love
On Valentine's Day, Ariel and I led a workshop focusing on self-love. Since a day devoted to love can be difficult for those who are locked away from or abandoned by their loved ones, Ariel and I decided to celebrate and explore self-love during our workshop. The layout of our workshop was:
-Introduction of names and favorite ice cream flavor
-Attendance sheet around the table
-Free-write: what is self-love? what does it mean?
-We played, from then on, empowering and upbeat music
-Writing activity: write yourself a love letter or love poem as if you were separate from yourself. (A chance to be cocky, and tell yourself why you're beautiful and great!)
-Art activity: draw either flowers, chocolates, or candy hearts which each represent something that you want to give yourself for Valentine's Day. Again, remove yourself, and zoom out to see what you want to be given, or should be given, or deserve.
-Then we shared
About twenty women showed up, which was surprising but wonderful. Some went off into corners to talk or do their own thing, which was fine in the large group. Some in these side groups had difficulty thinking about the idea of self-love or articulating a declaration of self-love, which was part of why they did not participate as much. In general, a number of women struggled with articulating their self-love or even understanding the concept, but most ended up with messages to themselves. The music went over very well, especially Beyonce's "Irreplaceable" and DJ kool's "Let me clear my throat".
Some things that people gave each other included: a teddy bear, loyalty, respect, "sex, sex, and more sex", patience, acceptance, and sobriety. Two women who had never before attended a SPACE workshop said that it was awesome, which completely made my night. At the end, everyone was left with a Valentine to themselves with their poem/letter and their gift to themselves.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Over the weekend, Courtney and Nina attended a nine-hour ACI volunteer training session. They enjoyed it, learned a range of prison procedures, and were amused and surprised by some of the comments made, including the stress against romantic relationships. They did not see any movie about Hepatitis, but they did see a movie about violations of sexual conduct.
-Introduction of names and favorite ice cream flavor
-Attendance sheet around the table
-Free-write: what is self-love? what does it mean?
-We played, from then on, empowering and upbeat music
-Writing activity: write yourself a love letter or love poem as if you were separate from yourself. (A chance to be cocky, and tell yourself why you're beautiful and great!)
-Art activity: draw either flowers, chocolates, or candy hearts which each represent something that you want to give yourself for Valentine's Day. Again, remove yourself, and zoom out to see what you want to be given, or should be given, or deserve.
-Then we shared
About twenty women showed up, which was surprising but wonderful. Some went off into corners to talk or do their own thing, which was fine in the large group. Some in these side groups had difficulty thinking about the idea of self-love or articulating a declaration of self-love, which was part of why they did not participate as much. In general, a number of women struggled with articulating their self-love or even understanding the concept, but most ended up with messages to themselves. The music went over very well, especially Beyonce's "Irreplaceable" and DJ kool's "Let me clear my throat".
Some things that people gave each other included: a teddy bear, loyalty, respect, "sex, sex, and more sex", patience, acceptance, and sobriety. Two women who had never before attended a SPACE workshop said that it was awesome, which completely made my night. At the end, everyone was left with a Valentine to themselves with their poem/letter and their gift to themselves.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Over the weekend, Courtney and Nina attended a nine-hour ACI volunteer training session. They enjoyed it, learned a range of prison procedures, and were amused and surprised by some of the comments made, including the stress against romantic relationships. They did not see any movie about Hepatitis, but they did see a movie about violations of sexual conduct.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)