VISUAL CONNECTIONS PROJECT: COMMUNITY EDUCATION PROGRAMS

CREATIVE START OPEN STUDIO PROGRAM

The CREATIVE START OPEN STUDIO PROGRAM is a ten - week - long visual arts open studio program developed specifically for youth with disabilities, between the ages of 17 and 21.

Through the CREATIVE START OPEN STUDIO PROGRAM participants will decide what kinds of art materials and processes they want to explore such as drawing, painting, printmaking, mixed - media, graphic story - telling, zines, and more. Participants will be provided with one - on - one support from a Community Arts Educator. There is no cost for this program, and all art supplies are provided. At the end of the program we will celebrate the artworks created by the program participants, through an exhibition open to the public at the Pedway Picture Gallery. Program participants may also be eligible to become a member of the Creative Spirit East Artist Collective and exhibit their art works through Veith Street Gallery Studio Association’s exhibition venues, Veith Street Gallery and the Pedway Picture Gallery.

TIME FRAMES PROGRAM

The Time Frames Program is a brand new program that provides a vehicle for adults with disabilities and seniors to express themselves through community based arts programs that will also addresses various issues facing the communities they live within. In effect this program is a community development program for under served communities that taps into the lived experiences of community elders. There will also be an inter generational component in the program in which elders and youth collaborate on a community based art project to address identified needs or issues within a community. The program is structured around three components that explore the past, present and future.

Community Arts Collaboration Program

The Community Arts Collaboration Program brings a number of creative process workshops to other community service providers who work with persons with disabilities. These workshops have been designed to fit the unique needs of the community service providers and their clients.

Here just a few of the creative process workshops offered through the Community Arts Collaboration Program.

Issues of Place
Life Drawings (Self Portrait / Self Map)
Futures Map (Setting Goals)
Extensions Drawings (Team Building)

To learn more about these programs call 456 - 0861

BIOGRAPHY

Gerard McNeil brings a diverse background to his present role as Education and Outreach Curator with Veith Street Gallery Studio Association where he facilitates community based arts education and professional development programs through the Visual Connections Project for persons with disabilities, community service providers and educators. Over the past twenty-seven years, Gerard has been engaged in a visual arts practice with exhibitions in Halifax, Toronto and St John’s. Along with his experiences in the visual arts, Gerard has been facilitating adult and community arts education programs for more than thirteen years. Paralleling this experience is some eleven years’ experience in the Human Services field working with persons with disabilities.

Informing these experiences is an equally diverse educational background that includes a Certificate in Photography from the Halifax Regional Vocational School (NSCC), a BFA in Fine Arts from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, a Certificate in Adult Education from Henson College (Dalhousie University), a B.Ed - Visual Arts Specialist degree from NSCAD and Mount Saint Vincent University. Gerard also possesses an M.Ed in Adult Education from Mount Saint Vincent University, a Certificate in Non-Profit Sector Management from Henson College (Dalhousie University), and is a Certified PLAR (Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition) Practitioner. Along with these credentials, Gerard has also completed the Tatamagouche Model of Education, Design and Leadership program (Levels One and Two), as well as participated in the Shambhala Institute for Authentic Leadership.