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  1. Defining Art

    January 27, 2022 by Keetah B.

    Art is such a big part of Oaxaca’s culture and its diversity is what makes it so unique. We had the chance to talk to artists who make art for a living, and it has been in their family for 5 generations. We also had the chance to talk to newer artists who may not depend on it for an income. It has been a very interesting experience to take in all the different perspectives of these artists, and learn about how they all coexist in the same place.

    -Class of 2024 Student Keetah B..

    Driving Question: How might we convey the intersection of local arts and economy through documentary filmmaking?

    What were your goals for this module? How did you achieve them?

    During the AyAyAyAyAy module, my goals were to improve my filmography skills while gaining an in-depth understanding of art and economy here in Oaxaca.

    Through this module, we were filming and editing for hours at a time, so I improved my filmography skills through constant practice and analyzing what I did wrong and how I could improve it. We also got feedback from local videographers, which was very useful when using Premiere Pro for the first time.

    During both the weXplore and back at the main residence, the experiential learning really helped me feel like I understood Oaxacan art. We even got to take part in making the art and talk to the artists. I now have a greater understanding of the relationship between art and economy, art and politics, and art and culture. I feel that I have also learned about how vital artisanship is here and the perspective more modern artists have of artisans.

    What new things did you learn about yourself?

    I learned more about my filming style and what I can improve on when filming. I also learned that I’m a perfectionist, especially when it comes to editing.

    I learned that my perspectives of what art is and the motivations people have for art don’t always align. I also learned how people’s perspectives of art itself might change depending on why they do art.

  2. Beyond a Canvas Project

    by Kiana B., Camille A., Kirsten A.

    Driving Question: How might we convey the intersection of local arts and economy through documentary filmmaking?

    What were your goals for this module? How did you achieve them?

    To inform others about local artists in Oaxaca relating to art and the economy. 

    What new things did you learn about yourself?

    Throughout this module, we learned multiple different things: From how art and economy in Oaxaca are changing to learning how to edit and film our very own documentary. This module also tested our limits, as it was very demanding no matter how interesting, and we can say that we are very proud of our final result.

    What are your big takeaway lessons from this project?

    Our biggest takeaway is how the art industry has evolved here and how that impacts the artists here in Oaxaca, and how there is more openness to expressing oneself through art.

  3. Crescendo: A Project on Music Theory

    June 7, 2021 by Diego M.

    Driving Question: How can I learn about music theory and teach others by analyzing Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata?

    Module Overview: For this project, Diego learned about music theory by researching chords, scales, and sheet music elements like clefs, staff, accidentals, and dynamic markings. Diego then analyzed and played Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata to identify the elements used in this song.

    Project Reflection: “I didn’t feel this project was work. I thought it more like a hobby, just one more day doing what I like. I learned many things that I didn’t know about the theory, even though I have been playing the piano for several years now. It is the first time that I have shown many people what I can do or play, and that’s really exciting to finally share.”

  4. Exploring Water Scarcity and Safety in Honduras

    February 26, 2021 by Estelle Woodcock

    Driving Question: How can I address some of the present threats to global health while promoting human rights and social progress?

    Project Overview: In this module, students were introduced to the foundations of global health. They learned about basic concepts, measurements, and determinants of health, and a number of key perspectives for considering global health issues.

    For her project, Estelle explored water scarcity in Honduras, which leads to a lack of basic sanitation and clean water for up to 1.8 million people. Non-communicable diseases in Honduras attributed to water cause a DALY rate of 4,540 per 100,000 people. Disease spreads through contaminated food and water tanks, and poor management, climate change, and political unrest worsen the issue.

    Project Reflection: “Exploring the niche of environmental global health opened my mind to so many new areas of interest in this field.  I thoroughly enjoyed this module and felt like the skills will be very applicable to other modules.”

  5. Aussie ABCs: Illustrating Australian Slang

    February 5, 2021 by Gigi Engalla

    Driving Question: How can I become proficient in Australian slang through art?

    Class of 2021 student Gigi E. designed her project on Australian slang and how it has become a part of the country’s identity. Her goal was to become competent and confident in communicating slang with the local community. She demonstrated this by creating a mini dictionary documenting Australian slang terms she learned through interactions with the locals. 

    “To further my understanding of Australian Slang, I thought there was no better source than the people of Australia themselves. Today I went around Scape and talked to people about their favorite Australian slang words. It was interesting to see how many of the terms that I already knew. Just from my experiences with Lexie and Elyce, I was able to learn a lot more terms than I thought I did. 

    The first people I interviewed were the people at the reception at Scape. They were able to confirm a bunch of the other terms that I had in my initial entries. This helped me know that they are still relevant and used today. One new word that they told me (which is now one of my favorite terms) is Eshay, a wannabe teenage gangster. They were able to show us pictures of what they meant and it was quite funny to walk around the city and recognize them on the streets.”

  6. Our Impact

    January 13, 2021 by Sofia V.

    Driving Question: How can I use photography to raise awareness about our human behavior’s impact on the environment?

    Project Description

    My personal project this term is a photography project about human behavior’s impact on the environment. While wondering why we are not acting as urgently as we should for the climate crisis, I found people often see the crisis as a distant challenge, both in time and in space. Through this project, I wanted to raise awareness about the impact of our daily and individual actions on the environment, and ultimately, bring people closer to the challenge.

    Reflection:

    “My main takeaway from this project is that, no matter how global any challenge is, the individual action will end up making the difference.”

  7. Food, Culture, Action

    October 13, 2020 by Marily M.

    Driving Question: What are the unique properties of a meal/dish from my culture and how can I share that with the world?

    Project Description: This module was about exploring my culture and highlighting our unique characteristics. They could be from language or family to religion and traditions. I was looking for a dish that is important to me and represents a big part of my culture. My final product for the project is a video explaining the importance of my dish, pan de muerto, and how to do it step by step.

    Project Reflection: “I enjoyed learned about my culture and the origin of many of my traditions. Baking pan de muerto and recording the process was challenging and exciting at the same time. I learned how to communicate in a simple and interesting way.” -Marily

  8. Tackling Malaria in the Democratic Republic of Congo

    by Sofia V.

    Driving Question: How can I address some of the present threats to global health while promoting human rights and social progress?

    Project Description: My project is a policy brief about the Malaria situation in Congo. It includes its nature and magnitude, the most affected populations, the socio-economic consequences, and the potential solution to reduce the burden. The policy aims to convince the finance Minister of Congo to invest in solutions for Malaria.

    Project Reflection: “I enjoyed hearing from my peers how the health care systems function in different countries. A challenge was writing in the concise and precise way required for the policy brief.” -Sofia W.

  9. Hot Takes

    October 7, 2020 by Vansh C. Kiana B. Theo M. and Methini G.

    Driving Question: How might we collaboratively implement a design-thinking process to meet the needs of the community we serve?

    Who was your target audience? Why?

    Our target audience was the TGS community. We saw the impact that going online had on the community’s morale. Since there were not as many opportunities to connect with one another, so we decided to create such an opportunity.

    What were your goals for this module? How did you achieve them?

    We aimed to give an opportunity to the TGS community to connect with each other in a way that is fun and comfortable. We did this by hosting an open-ended discussion about controversial topics.

    What did you learn about yourself or about your creative process or about your medium?

    Each one of us learned something different about ourselves.

    What did this project mean to you?

    This project gave us an opportunity to form more connections within the community. It was also our first time collaborating with people we hadn’t before, so this project also allow us to form bonds within our summative group.

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