My first favorite book, The Fire Cat

In the mid-1990s, I was on the fast track for a glamorous career in the publishing world. My first love was books  and, I was busily building a resume working for a variety of book and magazine publishers that no publishing company in New York City could possibly resist.

I was well on my way to fulfilling my life-long dream, when I was asked to participate as a mentor for Each One Reach One (http://www.eoearo.org/) an organization that provides one-on-one playwriting with youth in the juvenile justice system. The pay was pretty good and the project sounded interesting, so I figured I would give it a go.

My first trip to the maximum-security facility for San Francisco’s most violent juvenile offenders was terrifying. As soon as we walked through the metal detectors at the front door I began to hold my breath. We were escorted down a long hall toward the unit, stopping every hundred feet or so for some unseen guard to unlock yet another door, a system designed to discourage escape. Who would be waiting on the other side of that final door?

I imagined that who ever her was, he’d be disinterested at best, violent at worst. I’d been a  self-defense instructor for a few years and I imagined my response to all manner of harassment by my mentee. I was trying to convince myself that I could handle what ever might happen.

In fact, nothing that I imagined prepared me for my two weeks as Andre’s playwriting mentor. He was genuinely surprised and delighted that we cared enough to show up. As I helped him form his play out of nightly writing exercises, I watched Andre become enthralled by his new-found ability to speak the truth he held in his heart through the characters he created.  It was gratifying to arrive every evening to witness Andre write the dialogue he’d imagined the night before while in his cell. I watched him transform into a confident writer, able to give shape to his characters and reflect his experience as a young Black man in San Francisco.

Even more compelling, though, was how those two weeks changed me. Prior to this experience, I thought I was able to understand and accept a wide variety of people. Sitting next to Andre for two weeks, I realized that I came to the mentoring experience with a host of preconceived ideas about incarcerated youth – especially youth of color  – as scary, violent, and out of control. I was just not aware of how I had absorbed the cultural norm that sees African-American youth as public enemy number one. Perhaps Andre really was dangerous – I found out that he was transferred to the California Youth Authority , (http://www.topjuveniledefender.com/california_youth_authority.html) a sentence reserved for youth who commit the most heinous crimes – but engaging with him over creative pursuits reminded me of his humanity. After all, how many people are really born bad? I became aware of how circumstances may have shaped the choices Andre made and how struggling with the challenges inherent in creative expression could help him to make different choices in the future.

Sharing Andre’s creative process was an electric experience – witnessing how creative expression had given both of us a new way of thinking about ourselves woke up a passion in me that I didn’t know I had. By the end of the final performance of Andre’s play, I knew that I wanted to be that witness again, facilitating connections between youth and their creativity. So Brush Fire Painting Workshops was born.

We are proud to return to the Bayview Opera House Dare to Dream Arts Program. There is nothing more invigorating than spending the summer steeped in the creativity of these young people! This video highlights the diverse arts programs provided by Dare to Dream.

Click here to view the embedded video.

We are also excited to extend our 5-year partnership with Mission High School to include this summer’s learning opportunities.  We are glad to respond to the administration’s recognition of the crucial role community-based organization play in meeting students’ needs.  Click here for more information about the changes in education happening at Mission High.

Mission High School as seen from Dolores Park

If you have some time to volunteer for either program, please email volunteer@Paintbrushfire.org. We look forward to seeing you soon!

Would you like to know more about what some of our painters have been through? Please click here to listen to a powerful piece about girls being exploited in Oakland. It’s hard to listen to at times, but only when we know where they have come from can we appreciate our girls’ resiliency.

The piece was produced by  Youth Radio. This report is the result of a six month investigation in child sex trafficking.

Around 3,000 students, teachers, and volunteers in New Delhi created the "Climate Elephant." Daniel Dancer designed this aerial art to ask world leaders not to ignore the elephant in the room.

As climate negotiators meet in Cancun this week to discuss how to respond to the threat of global climate change, activists are using a new tool to remind them just how big the problems – and the possibilities – are.

In a mobilization sponsored by 350.org, citizens from all corners of the globe gathered together in a series of giant aerial art projects.

Many of them were photographed from orbiting satellites.
Go to http://www.yesmagazine.org/planet/350-earth to see more of the amazing work!

I was most moved by the two students who dove right in and painted about what could possibly be the worst experiences I could possibly imagine. Cassandra’s painting was about watching her friend get shot at Mission and Harrison Streets. She watched him die on that corner, she said, before the police and ambulance got there because “they took their time – too long.”

Tyree wrote a rap about his brother and the drive by shooting that took his life. The poetry of his writing, the lyrical rhythm of the words was in stark contrast to the grizzly scene he gave shape to in his painting. I asked him when the drive by took place. He said August, only 3 months ago.

And that’s the thing that inspired me. Only three months into grieving his brother’s senseless murder, Tyree was at school, showing up, learning. Both he and Cassandra were so present to their pain without letting it crush them, without numbing out. I really believe that this is the healing process in action. I am in awe of the courage and strength these two show in dealing with the reality they were born into. I’m in awe and in spite of the horrific nature of what came up in the paintings, I left the school a little more hopeful that when I went in.

Click here to join: http://www.bloomspot.com/circles/brush-fire-painting-workshops/

BloomSpot will donate $5 for each person who joins between today and November 24th at midnight!

BloomSpot is an online publication providing exclusive discounts to local restaurants, bars, spas, and more.

Once you join our Circle, any item you purchase will generate a donation.

Please spread the word to your friends by copying the link — anyone can join!

http://www.bloomspot.com/circles/brush-fire-painting-workshops/

Help us with an easy FREE way to fundraise!

Thanks again for your support!

Enjoy drink specials, a raffle & more at EXTRA HAPPY HOUR!!

Date: Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Time: 6 to 9 PM

Place: Madrone Art Bar (500 Divisidero Street @ Fell)

Suggested donation: $5

This painting is about my mom. She is bright and peaceful and fun! ~Tia

If you can not attend but would like to make a donation, please go to <https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?aid=1380>
Don’t forget to choose Brush Fire Painting Workshops from the pull down menu
under “Which fiscally sponsored project will benefit from your donation?”

The class will take place at the historic Bay View Opera House www.bvoh.org at 4705 Third Street, San Francisco, CA 94124.

Starting on Tuesday, September 7^th from 3:30 to 5:30 PM, we will embark on a journey with our students into the realms of unbridled creativity.

Volunteers work with a skilled facilitator to help foster imagination and manage logistics of the class.

Skills needed:

* Nonjudgmental approach to art

* Curiosity about creative process

* Interest in the well being of youth

~NO art experience necessary!

~Must be available for 8 weeks of class

Duties include:

* Setting up for class

* Talking to painters about their work

* Providing materials for students during workshops

* Cleaning up after class.

Interested? Want more information? Send an email to naomi (@) paintbrushfire.org

We look forward to hearing from you!