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The feature below is brought to you by Paint Love, Inc., an organization that has received a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about our giving initiatives, please click here. To learn more about the featured organization, please visit their website here.  Paint Love provides extraordinary arts programming to empower youth and strengthen communities. Since 2014, we have served over 17,000 kids through nearly 100 community partnerships around Atlanta, Georgia. In 2022, we have already surpassed our annual goal of serving 2,000 kids. We have noticed a new openness to integrating arts into enhancing the wellbeing of communities and individuals — and we’re excited to respond. Our newest addition to programming is our Artist Mentorship Program. This program was created to support aspiring-professional teen artists by pairing them with professional artists. Their conversations center on creativity and mental health, along with enforcing that being an artist is a viable career path.This program reflects Paint Love’s dedication to equity, to providing fair opportunities for young people. The students in the program are largely minority students from a Title-1 school– meaning students who have additional barriers to success. Our artists guide them through their internal and external resources and skills to overcome those barriers. We have noticed improved attendance, academics and engagement at school from their mentorships. At the end of year-long work together, the artists and teens will create a piece together for their local community. This is an important step to our programming because it is a reminder to young people that their talents are valued and important to those around them. Their artist mentor guides them on working with a budget, creating a proposal and submitting it. This year, our matches are creating pieces for Austell’s Legion Field Park since most of the youth are attending South Cobb High School in Austell, Georgia. We have a few exciting projects to highlight: -One pair, a visual artist matched with a musician, is creating a piece that includes a QR code of the teen’s songs. The visual artist has used her connections in the arts to have the student create an EP, before the end of her senior year, with a producer. This student was recommended to the program because of her indecision about her future. The student’s mentor has been working hard to encourage the 12th grader to keep writing and performing. They’ve been building a clear plan for her post-graduation life. -A muralist and a teen graffiti artist have an exciting idea to spread positivity. With aerosol paint on large boards, they will create quirky characters with affirmations. This student was recommended because of attendance and mental health issues. Both have improved dramatically as his arts have been engaged in his education. -Another match is working to line up spoken word performances together, as the artist encourages the student to continue to create poetry. They have both worked on self-confidence skills to perform. -Another match is a visual artist and photographer. The artist will create a piece of the student’s photography. The young person (they/them) is a participant in Lost-n-Found’s residential programming. They have always wanted to be an artist. The mentor is encouraging them to use their unique experiences to create. It has been incredible to witness these partnerships bloom. Both mentor and mentee have reiterated the power of long-term relationship-based art programming. We are excited to fill the art park with their work and continue to watch this program grow. Submitted by: Mandy Noa |
See beautiful in yourself.
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