West Central Festival of the Arts: A WACy Community Art Project

Salem Lutheran Church was buzzing on Friday night, September 21, the opening night of the West Central Festival of the Arts, as members of the community gathered in a celebration of local art.  What used to be a basketball court was transformed into a gallery space to display the works of West Central artists of all types; paintings, photography, ceramics, metal sculptures, woodworks, floral art, and quilts, to name a few.  Hors d'oeuvres, alcohol, and coffee were available all night and live music—piano and harp, separately—echoed throughout the room, interrupted briefly by pastor Liv Larson’s  introductory speech and not-so-briefly by an auction.

Also present was Whitworth University’s Community Arts in Practice class, tasked with providing interactive art projects for the attendees to participate in.  The class was split up into two groups, creatively dubbed “Team Right” and “Team Left” by Professor Katie Creyts; Team Right was in the left corner of the room and Team Left was in the right corner (kind of WACy, isn’t it?).

We, the members of Team Left, had the idea of making a prayer board to be hung in the church after the festival.  Participants could jot down any prayers, thoughts, concerns, etc. on the inside of a small tag and then decorate the outside with stamps, paint, or markers (or anything else, for that matter).  The tag then would be tied to the prayer board—a piece of plywood, layered on one side with chicken wire that had been secured beneath a two-by-one wooden border—with a strip of off-white ribbon.  The idea was this: provide an activity that would allow community members to discretely record their own thoughts while also participating in an open-ended group art project.  Each tag would be a symbolic representation of the individual within the Salem Lutheran, or perhaps the West Central community, represented by the board.  Sometime down the road, every participant can pick out their own contribution and feel proud to be a part of that community.

At first, participation was tough to come by; the people seemed shy.  But the drinks got drank and the drinkers got drunk (well, perhaps I’m exaggerating…but that must have helped at least a little) and “shy” was no longer a problem.  Throughout the night, the board began to fill up and we saw our idea come into fruition.  People seemed to love the concept, which is gratifying from an organizer’s point-of-view.  Not only that, but the prayer board looked great!  Having been rather unsure of how the project would turn out, I was pleasantly satisfied with the “finished product” of this open-ended project.

The Festival of the Arts continues through September 28, so whether you are a member of the West Central community or you simply love art, make your way to Salem Lutheran Church to see a bunch of great local artworks.  And if you do find yourself at the festival, please leave your own individual contribution to Team Left’s prayer board!  Oh, and I suppose you could participate in Team Right’s project as well…