JOHNSON CITY—East Tennessee State University's Center for Community Outreach and Family Services is hosting "Our Best Work," a juried art show displaying drawings, paintings and photography pieces produced by young people enrolled in the center's various youth programs.
The opening will be held on Thursday, Dec. 20, from 5-7 p.m., on the third floor of the King Building, located at 300 E. Main St. in downtown Johnson City.
Attendees will have the opportunity to meet the artists and order prints for a donation, which will help provide snacks for the youth programs.
"The young people in the art show are all in our youth programs," said Jill L. Bumpus, youth resource coordinator at the center. "The programs work with at-risk youth. One of our goals is to help the youths develop life skills, such as communication, which are often overlooked."
ETSU's Center for Community Outreach and Family Services "encompasses a number of programs that provide intensive treatment and preventive services to at-risk children, adolescents, and their families in the communities where they reside." One of the programs participating in the art show is DIGiLAB, which stands for Drug Intervention Gives Independence. The "youth technology initiative and prevention" model builds up the protective factors for the youths by teaching the children photography skills with digital cameras, computers and art skills, Bumpus said.
While the show is "juried," each youth who enters a piece will win an award that points out the strengths of their work. For example, some awards might include "most colorful," and "most creative." Jurors include Dick Nelson of Nelson Fine Art Center; Betty Cobb, Johnson City Library's director of youth services; and Susan Lachmann, former director of DIGiLAB.
The youth are also submitting a paragraph describing their work from their point of view and its importance to them.
"One of our biggest struggles with these young people is their need for instant gratification," Bumpus said. "Many are creating a new piece of artwork for the show, and we are encouraging them to work on it over a period of time rather than in one sitting."
The idea for the art show originated as a way to decorate the blank walls of the Community Outreach and Family Services office hallway. After the show, the art will remained displayed as part of the "Hallway Gallery," and Bumpus hopes to hold periodic art shows.
For more information about "Our Best Work," contact Bumpus at (423) 232-5759.