Kensington Community Curators

As part of Porch Light’s Kensington Community Curators program, five community members  were selected this summer to plan and host arts, culture and wellness events in their community with the financial and administrative support of the Kensington Storefront.  The five curators are Tyler Kline, Daisie Cardona, Margarita Gonzalez, Kate Stoler and Jessica Shoffner. They were chosen by our community advisory committee and are also all residents of Kensington.

RELATED EVENTS:

December 2  |  Pop-up Textile Exhibit & Demonstration  |  Southeast X Southeast Storefront  |  12:30 – 2:30 pm  |  1901 S 9th Street at the BOK Bldg, Suite 413
Learn about Karen weaving from Burma, Tenango embroidery from Mexico, and crochet from master artists.  For information, contact shira.walinsky@muralarts.org

December 9  |  Tyler Kline Workshop Exhibition  |  The Kensington Storefront  |  1 – 3 pm  |   3208 Kensington Avenue
Artworks resulting from four workshops led by Tyler Kline will be on exhibition to share with the community.  The workshops combined mural techniques, written poems, and found objects.

December 16  |  Art Exhibition  |  Southeast X Southeast Storefront   |  1 – 4 pm  |  1901 S 9th Street at the BOK Bldg, Suite 413
Join us for an art exhibition that will display works resulting from our bilingual painting workshops facilitated by Alma Figueroa-Gonzalez with both adults and kids and our ceramics workshop led by Gina Pacheco Brito.

Here’s what the curators did:

Tyler Kline held four monthly workshops at his studio located at 2731 Kensington Avenue throughout the fall. His final workshop will be on December 2 from 2 pm to 5 pm. The workshop series, which combined mural techniques, written poems, and found objects, will culminate in an art exhibition on display at the Kensington Storefront on December 9 from 1 pm to 3 pm, located at 3208 Kensington Avenue.

Second time curator, Daisie Cardona works for the Kensington Voice. She will be leading photography and poetry workshops with children from the neighborhood. Her ten workshops will result in an open mic event at McPherson Library on December 5 from 4 pm – 6 pm.

Margarita Gonzalez, a community engagement coordinator for Impact Services, is a Kensington resident. She held three arts and crafts workshops with youth and two on adult wellness. Her Halloween workshop was held at McPherson library on October 27, led by Kate Stoler. Her guided meditation and yoga workshop was held on October 13. Her “free draw” art workshop with artist Dan Fetters, where you start with a circle or other design and build upon it, was held on November 14. She will have a sound bath workshop led by Riot Alliance on December 12 at  McPherson Library. Margarita’s final workshop will be a Christmas DIY ornament-making workshop at McPherson Library on December 19 led by Kristen Snow and Jessica Shoffner.

Kate Stoler’s workshops focus on contemplating doing something that seems impossible. She will use journaling, meditation, discussions, and vision boards—all trying to focus on connecting to your future self, and making that dream a reality.

Curator Jessica Shoffner, who operates Hartlane Farm in Kensington, located at 514 Hart Lane, will make Christmas arts and crafts. Shoffner and Kensington resident Kristen Snow will use found objects from the farm and thrifted materials.