STORYTELLING THROUGH ART
Curating a space for participants to build cross-culture literacy through making art and telling stories
BACKGROUND
Students at DSI come from a variety of different countries and cultures. With different cultures come different stories. Stories are powerful, it brings people closer, creates inclusivity and with so much diversity it helps develop cross-cultural literacy. I curated the space where I could further develop my facilitation skills, as well as provide my fellow cohort members time to play together by using different materials and art supplies to create something that tells a story from their childhood.
CHALLENGE
Graduate school can be sometimes overwhelming. For a cohort member at DSI, the process of becoming a Social Impact Designer is hands-on, rigorous and challenging. This usually leaves less time for personal meaningful conversations. At DSI, Every Wednesday night we got a space for 20 minutes that was reserved for making creative reflection.
WHEN
Feb 2020
DURATION
20 minutes
ROLE
Facilitator
Curator
Strategist
Communication Design
TEAM
Kexin Lyu
Jiangyi yu
MENTOR
LOCATION
CONCEPT
While most cohort members are coming to study from different countries, they are away from their home, friends and family. I felt the need to curate the space for them to play, make, connect with each other and tell a story. What can be better than listening to each other's childhood memories?
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Space was set up before everyone arrives.
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Randomness was chosen to make groups after a briefing about the activity.
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Each person made something to reflect on their memory as a child and at the end of 20 minutes, participants shared their stories in groups which led to laughter, nostalgia and shared feelings.
Some snapshots from the workshop
Stories are recognisable patterns, and in those patterns we find meaning. We use stories to make sense of our world and to share that understanding with others.
–Frank Rose
