Back from a fantastic 3 day graffiti urban arts workshop in Brooklyn with the Young Women’s Leadership School. The girls did an amazing job this week. They got a rare opportunity to learn the art and design of doing letters, and characters. There’s nothing more fun than learning about line, shape, and color when your rocking out your name in bubble or straight letter style. Many kids in our community live around graffiti and street art. This was a great opportunity to teach them something from their own block they can relate to! With a few markers, brushes, and paint the kids not only pieced their names they also collaborated on a large canvas mural that will be installed in their school. The message of choice to represent their winter camp: “ENERGY UP!” A conscious daily choice to get their health in check, and help fight teenage obesity 1 day at a time. Shout out to Big City Walls for teaming me up with Young Womens Leadership, and the Energyup.org program this year;) THANK YOU!!! Till next time…

Pilot marker outlines all by themselves! I was proud:)

Great job ladies! Keeping it fun, clean, and graphic…

These ladies were a bit shy, but cute!

Fun, Fabulous, and Fierce! Perfect team for the name tagz canvas…

the fruit and veggie character crew:)

The pink apple lady with gold earrings lol! It’s all in the attitude…

How dope would it be if I had my very own classroom! The art and design projects I can do with these kids would be awesome…

Thinking hard on design elements so they can make me proud!

Good Job!

Little pineapple character with Mohawk hair almost complete…

Last step TAG UP!

TOOFLY & HIGH VOLTAGE rock’n for 2010!

Thank you for the THANK YOU CARDS!!!:)

Energy Up! is the health and wellness program started by lifestyle guru Kathie Dolgin, aka High Voltage, to get America’s girls moving, healthy and energized. Or, as she puts it: “Fit, Fabulous and Fierce!”

EUVA’s (Energy Up Voltage Approved) mission is to fight teenage obesity and prevent type 2 diabetes and other diseases associated with poor nutrition and a sedentary lifestyle. EUVA focuses on the belief that wholesome lifestyle habits acquired as a teenager provide a lifetime of benefits in the form of weight control, reduced health risks, and greater self-esteem. EUVA’s Energy Up! Program educates and motivates teenagers to make healthier food and lifestyle choices by forging a strong emotional connection in a manner that is fun, exciting and energetic to promote positive physical, mental, emotional and social development.

EUVA is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization that runs its unique Energy Up! program in schools in socio-economically disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Want to see more workshop photos?

TOOFLY WORKSHOPS

YOUNG WOMENS LEADERSHIP SCHOOL – Graffiti Workshop 2009

WOW lot’s to catch up on. NYC is just crazy in the summer lot’s of stuff going on….okay so we’ll set it off with my kids mural workshop that went down this past week…

BIG CITY WALLS – Younity + Toofly Street Art Mural Project with The Women’s Leadership school was a huge success! The workshop kicked off at our favorite summer spot THE SECRET GARDEN in Bushwick. Weather was loving us! For the past 3 days a group of 30+ young women got a chance to experience the stages of producing a collaborative aerosol mural project with a NATURE theme reflective of what we created at the Secret Garden. It was one of my first official street art mural projects with a large youth group and it went smooooooooth as pie. WHEW! I can def get the hang of this every summer, kids rock!!!

Day 1 – Introduction, Project Details, Concept, Sketches, and a walk through the Secret Garden for some inspiration. SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS BELOW >>>

Letter pieces, graphics, and design elements…

GATES AVENUE train station up above…

Nothing like sitting in the shade with mother nature, drawing, and hanging with your friends…

We’re ready for tomorrow!

Once their sketches were done we got the secret key from Joseph and took a stroll through a hidden treasure…

THE SECRET GARDEN tucked away in the very back a large landscape with an array of homegrown vegetables, and fruits. Sustainable living at it’s best! GROW YOUR OWN FOOD!

Ready for the wall on thursday!

DAY 2
Wall Sketch – Ran into some problems with the owners for a quick minute, but once I whipped out the photos and dropped the science they calmed down. When folks see spray cans they don’t know how to react. Is it graffiti? Is it art? Is it legal? your getting a free wall dude! Chill out…

DAY 3
Full on teacher organizer mode that day.  Kids and spray cans can be a hand full if you don’t know how to manage. Especially when you got a large group of 30+ teens with a lot lot of energy. Once they were in their teams, and got their daily dose of direction, technique instruction, and guidance they were free as a bird. I enjoyed watching them make their own decisions at one point. That made me very very proud;)

Can control technique in full effect…

Lot’s of spraying going on…

A 60 foot wall was complete in 4 hours! AMAZING. Good job ladies!!!

Crew 5 – BUTTERFLY

Crew 4 – TREE LOVE

Crew 3 – FUNKY FLOWS

Crew 2 – FLY HIGH

CREW 1 – FLOWER POWER

Shout out to the councelor crew! Summer Camp is just one stop away from caring folks like these in the community;)

The Young Women’s Leadership School of Astoria!
” MAKE IT A BETTER PLACE  FOR YOU AND FOR ME” R.I.P. MJ!

Thanks for the THANK YOU CARDS!!!:) { Cheeze Smile }