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An Exploration of Community in Textile and Pattern

The You Are Here Street Banner Project engaged Fifth Grade students at Cuerton Elementary of San Jose in exploring community identity and geometry through photography and digital pattern design. In introductory lessons, students created cultural textile patterns which were digitally printed as furoshiki fabrics, (Japanese eco-friendly wrapping cloths). The Fourth Graders of Hawaii Preparatory Academy also participated in the introductory workshop and students from both schools used VoiceThread to peer critique and examine the cultural motifs of both schools' designs. Using their expanded understanding of community visual identity, Cureton students photographed what they believed represents the uniqueness of their neighborhood. Students created digital textile patterns in Repper Pro using these photos as source images. Collaboratively, they collaged their patterns and photos into seventeen 8’ x 2.5’ street banners. They taught pattern design workshops to the public and presented their banner designs to community leaders. Students experienced the synergy of art and technology which drives Silicon Valley. When their banners hang from the light posts on Alum Rock Avenue this summer, the banners will carry the students’ creative interpretations and reflections on community identity out into the neighborhood.

Above  is a video pitch of this street banner project I posted on Kickstarter to attempt to raise funds to support this workshop series. I did not receive my funding goal this way, but it is still a useful tool to explain the project. This project grew out of ideas developed during the KCI MERIT Scholar Summer Institute of 2010 and from the FusionWear SV Project which resulted in the TECHstyleSoftWEAR:Surface & Shape installation.

Below is initial concept:

YOU ARE HERE. An Exploration in Community Identity Through Textiles on Prezi

Two Schools

Where are you? Where are they? Majority of project will be conducted at Cureton Elementary, but radial pattern project component and VoiceThread collaborative will be conducted with online feedback between the two schools.

Cureton Elementary

Alum Rock, San Jose.

Hawaii Preparatory Academy

Kamuela, Hawaii.

GRANT FUNDING RECEIVED: $6,330.00

• Donor Circle for the Arts Grant from the Silicon Valley Community Foundation $5,000.00 for street banner printing and workshop instruction.

• KCI MERIT mini grant $830.00 for digital textiles for Hawaii and San Jose students to create furoshiki and installation fabrics for student showcase at Montalvo Art Splash.

• Alum Rock Educational Foundation Grant of $500.00 for material costs.

The installation of this project has been made possible in part by an additional 300.00 grant from Silicon Valley Community Foundation's Donor Circle for the Arts, Rushton Hurley of Next Vista for Learning and by In Printz of Sunnyvale who gave a large discount on printing services to support the project.Thank you to all!

The Alum Rock Educational Foundation is acting as the fiscal sponsor for the You Are Here Banner Project. Donations through them are tax deductible. To donate make checks out to: Alum Rock Educational Foundation, PO Box 56178, San Jose CA 95156 and put "Banner Project" in the memo line. Thank you
70 students from Alum Rock participating. 22 students from Hawaii participating.