Other student projects

Click on the links for photos of the other students in the class and their projects:

Jeremy's
Ariella's
Katie's
Mike's
Kristen's
Katie's seat/stop-installed
Katie's, Ariella's, and Jeremy's projects at Neighborhood House
Ariella's story box - Installed

Final Project

Here is my final project. The second image has a collage of images from what the installed project might actually look like.

The project was installed/unveiled Dec 13, 2007 at the Neighborhood House's Holiday Dinner. The event celebrates the neighborhood by hosting a meal for children and their parents. The event was attended by hundreds and our projects were placed in the central entry space for everyone to consider and discuss. Tom met with several community and program leaders to discuss our solutions. He said they were well received.

My statement for the project, on the second board, reads as follows:

"The idea is simple, create a place that acts as a bus stop for children and somehow engages it’s environment. Create a place for kids to meet, get around the neighborhood, and somehow relate to residents and the community at large. My solution was a piece that features a limestone base,
bricks or locks, and cut limestone or stained concrete seating area. This base will act like a communal fi re-pit from times and places where people gathered to share, to learn. This is a place of warmth, light, storytelling, and a beacon in the night. The ornamental grasses and other plant materials rise like a constant, flowing flame and surround the aluminum centerpiece. The aluminum, a shining, reflective shaft, has asymmetrical cutouts to represent fl ame, tendrils of smoke, and bits of treacle floating into the sky. A solar light atop the post will recharge during the day and cast a pleasant glow at night. A brushed acrylic pipe, inside the aluminum, will catch the light and make the cutouts glow. The light will help children see and enjoy the bus stop in the summer evenings and as the winter light dwindles. A sign that represents the West Side and the rising sun sits atop the post and will be backed with a carved steel plate with orange and red tile mosaic. This piece will complete the flame theme and provide color and whimsy. After all this is a place for children to engage and share and will hopefully be source of pride and identity for the community."

Overall I found this class to be a very positive experience and appreciated any feedback we received. I think the one thing I would take away from learning to get involved in a community project is that YOU have to provide the community. No one else is as interested in your ideas as you are and you need to make it a full-time job to coordinate even the most cursory meetings or follow through. Everyone has their priorities and will tend to them as they see fit. I had been given the impression that there was a certain level of excitement about this initiative that, in the end was very ephemeral. In the class and in the community we need to coddle those whom we feel should be most interested in our success. Just something to keep in mind should you be asked to perform a similar task.

I had originally conceived of this blog as a very simple, accessible tool for the interested parties to communicate/share/react. As it turned out I was the only one. A tool is only as useful as the users make it. Thanks for your interest. Get out there and create something positive in your community. It's the best investment you can make.

If you have questions about the images or ideas please feel free to contact me.

-Jeremy