In addition to our regular art classes at various refugee/migrant centers, we also hold bigger events in which we give 50+ people at a time a chance to create art! Often, we branch out into different activities like bracelet making and rock painting along with traditional painting activities on a canvas.
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This is my first time painting! I like it a lot. Today, I painted a field of flowers with Chicago in the background, because I live here now. I also painted a field with my home in Venezuela in the background. I’m excited to show my dad what I made because I think he’ll like it.
-Miguel, a migrant currently living at a police station
Art festival for refugees who live at a Chicago Police station
9/14/23– Today, we held an “art festival” for 50+ child refugees who’ve crossed the southern border and were sent to Illinois. Right now, Illinois is experiencing an influx of refugees/migrants from South America and doesn’t have adequate housing support systems in place to house all of them. So, while the refugees wait to be placed in a shelter/supportive housing space, they live and sleep at police stations, especially those in Chicago. These police stations are housing so many refugees that they are scarcely even able to provide them with hot meals, much less organize activities for them. This means that the 55 children living at Chicago Police station in Auburn don’t have access to any creative outlets or activities whatsoever.
Recognizing this deficiency, I asked the police station if they would let me come and teach art classes to the refugees there. I also run an art community outreach club at my highschool, so I recruited some of the club members to help me run the event, and we went to the police station after school and set up various activities for the kids, such as painting canvases, rock decorating, and jewelry making. We wanted to focus the activities around items that the children could make/decorate and then carry with them easily, since they’ll no doubt be moving a lot due to their unstable living situations.
It was everyone’s first time making art like this, and all the kids had a great time! Everyone painted multiple rocks and canvases and made lots of bracelets and necklaces! We’re so grateful that we had an opportunity like this and are excited to hopefully come again.
Art Gallery Event Showcasing Seniors’ Work
6/1/23– Today, we arranged an art gallery event to showcase the work of the seniors at Horizon Senior Living. Hafsah has been working with them for the past year to teach them how to paint, and today their work was shown at a professional art gallery in Lake Zurich! Seniors had the chance to see their work on display and we handed out awards. Thank you to Mainstreet Gallery for lending us your space!