For the Neighborhood and Me project, students produced digital interactive panoramas (aka murals). Through the development of this project, students learned to use design principals and graphic elements, such as repetition, hierarchy, texture, color, and transition.

Students learned about the history of collage and discuss the various formats of collages from the art of Russian Constructivists and Dadaists to contemporary artists and designers. Students also took a field trip to The Social and Public Art Resource Center (SPARC), an arts center that produces, preserves and conducts educational programs about community based public art works. SPARC was founded in 1976 by artist, activist, and muralist Judy Baca.

The student murals curated an experience of walking the paths of the places on the map, and the textures of the experience at a street level.

Students were challenged to see what kind of juxtapositions or narratives they can create through these “linearesque” audio/visual presentations. They were taught to use Vuvox, an online application that allows you to cut and collage images, embed video and audio, and create stand-alone multimedia panoramic experiences. They were encouraged to apply the graphic principles learned and perhaps integrate some of the styles of collage artists and designers.

Check out the murals by clicking on the entries below.