Through a generous grant from SE Uplift and partnerships with Montavilla Neighborhood and Business Associations, Milepost 5 and the Montavilla Farmers Market (to name a few), the Creative Science School is hosting it’s 2nd annual FREE, Montavillage Festival, a community building event between the school and surrounding Montavilla neighborhood. Lots of fun activities, food (Koi Fusion, Domo Dogs and BiPartisan pie, people!), music and lively, snappy folks will be at the school on Saturday, May 22nd from 1-4 PM at 1231 SE 92nd Ave between Division and Stark.

The Creative Arts Program (of which I am volunteer Director) will be offering a community art project called the Faces of Montavillage where visitors paint their faces on a wooden panel which will become a permanent part of the school fencing (much like some schools have painted salmon and attached them to their school fence). This literally gives a face to our community and will probably be one of the few times you have unrivaled permission to make a face and keep it that way. Portland artists, Jolie Guillebeau and Chris Haberman, both renown for their amazing art and painting a gazillion faces, will join me. So, come over and make a face!

Another Creative Arts Program will be led by Vibe of Portland instructor and PNCA grad, Leslie Tucker. Leslie is well known around the school for her beautiful mosaics. Vibe has generously donated the materials this year for everyone to mosaic some newly poured cement benches that were designed by volunteers parents from the Creative Arts Program and the Garden Group at CSS. If you’ve ever wanted to try out mosaic or love gluing little pieces in place, get over there already!

I’m really excited about these projects because they’re another way for the Creative Arts Program to offer great art but also because, as an artist, I’ve been exploring the idea of art as a social practice. I’m still learning about what it all means but I see it as the act of creating art that emphasizes people in relationship to one another and their environment and community. So, painting faces with people that get to hang in public and mosaic-ing benches that people get to share sitting on seems pretty perfect to me! I’ll be sending out more information about Montavillage as we get closer to May 22nd. Save the date!