CUBA VISUAL STORY TELLING

JOE MEDINA, HW MIDDLE SCHOOL VISUAL ARTS TEACHER, ALYSSA SHERWOOD HW UPPER SCHOOL VISUAL ARTS TEACHER AND Peace Works Travel tourS WORKED COLLABORATIVELY TO INITIATE AN ON-GOING GLOBAL COLLABORATION BETWEEN TEENS AT HARVARD WESTLAKE AND TEENS IN CUBA. STUDENTS WILL USE CONTEMPORARY PHOTOGRAPHY, CAMERA PHONES, TRADITIONAL CAMERAS, SOCIAL MEDIA AND ON-LINE DIGITAL SKETCH BOOKS AS A MEANS TO EXPLORE AND FORM IDENTITY, AND DEVELOP VISUAL COMMUNICATION. THIS INVESTIGATION AND DOCUMENTATION OF TEEN IDENTITY VIA TECHNOLOGY, SOCIAL MEDIA AND SMARTPHONES IS MIRRORING THE CURRENT CHANGES TAKING PLACE IN CUBA AND UNITED STATES. IN PRE-DEPARTURE WORKSHOP’S WITH HW TEACHERS AND DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHER EUNICE ADORNNO , STUDENTS WILL ACQUIRE SKILLS AND PRACTICAL STRATEGIES IN VISUAL COMMUNICATION, DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY, INTERVIEWS, CAMERA USE, AND SOCIAL MEDIA AS A VISUAL DIARY. THE PROJECT WILL ESTABLISH LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES WHERE STUDENTS THINK AND ACT GLOBALLY AS WELL AS LOCALLY. WE HOPE OUR PROJECT WILL TRANSITION INTO ONGOING GLOBAL VISUAL ARTS -COLLABORATION THAT INVITES STUDENTS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE TO COLLABORATE IN A COMMON THEME. THE COMPLETED PROJECTS WILL RESULT IN A BOOK AND GALLERY SHOW.