MASC's Spring 18 Newsletter Spring 2018 Newsletter | Page 2

After a series of simultaneous residencies
involving the various art forms, the resulting
creative works are shared in a festival
format. Many of these are performative, with
participants on stage with their peers and
the professional artists. Others feature a
collective outcome, such as a music video
that includes photography, lyrics, music and
dance all woven together. The results of
these creative efforts include a legacy of
murals and visual art exhibitions that
beautify neighborhoods, as well as music
videos, animated works, CinePoems,
and mini-documentaries. More than
115 videos have been created to date
and are available on MASC’s Youtube
channel. Youth have also performed
in spin-off events, gaining city-wide
exposure. It is a change-making
program, one that not only offers
artistic experiences and
opportunities for residents to
express themselves, but deepens
civic engagement in the
community.
This is exactly the kind
of impact we know the
arts can make. Awesome
Arts harnesses this
incredible power.
MASC thanks the US Embassy in Canada
for its nomination for this special award, and
for all the wonderful projects we have done
together over the past 10 years. These
projects include: Red Kite Blue Sky, a play
created and toured in Ottawa for Autistic
children created in partnership with Jacqui
Russell from Chicago Children’s Theatre,
visits from Native American artist, Kelly
Church who worked in collaboration with
MASC Artist, Daniel Richer to bring
Indigenous teachings through the arts to
students in rural communities, and
Sonsheree Giles, who choreographed a
dance performance, Dream a Little Dream
with MASC Artists, Propeller Dance, a
multi-abled dance company which then
toured schools for a year. As well, we
brought activist-artist Mark Strandquist to
Ottawa to create socially activated artworks
with youth in detention (in partnership with
the Youth Services Bureau), and musician,
Ricky Nigaglioni from the Bronx who
worked with youth from the Boys and Girls
Club and Pathways to Education to create
a rap music video. It has been a very
prosperous relationship with the Embassy,
one where American and Canadian artists
have had so many cross-border
opportunities to showcase and share their
special skills and talents in the arts with the
Ottawa region.
* NAHYP web site.
Cover a
n
Award d Inside page
Winner
fr
s broch om the NAH
YP
ure.
Originally an initiative of the President's former
Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, the
(NAHYP) program was
sponsored through a
partnership between the
National Endowment for
the Arts, the National
Endowment for the
Humanities, and the
institute of Museum and
Library Services. The
NAHYP officially closed
on December 31st, 2017
Written by
Audrey Churgin
2
YP Cohort.
The 2017 NAH