Maggie's Introduction of Herself and Beyond

Hello Fellow Summer Fellowers,

I am a storyteller above all, which transcends into all of my art forms. It is my belief that artists are the litmus paper of our society and serve to reveal the health of a generation for all the ages to come. Artists must stay the most awake and aware of societal issues and injustices when no one else is willing to acknowledge them. I want to use my art to share aesthetics and awareness. I’m a Creative Writing major with a poetry concentration, because writing comes the most naturally to me, but I also enjoy visual art. I’m currently taking many illustration classes as well. An additional passion of mine is serving others, especially through the works of non-profits. Within non-profits, I’d like to either be a director or the event coordinator. This brings me to my Summer Fellow position. This summer I am a Summer Fellow for the first time and I am working with the Art Sanctuary, but perhaps more specifically, with Ms. Val Gay. Unfortunately she has been sick and then busy, so I was not able to meet her in person and learn about her experience at the University of the Arts, or what major see was. What I do know is that she is a female, black leader in America, which is what America desperately needs more of. Art Sanctuary serves the Philadelphia community by bringing people together through black art. They host musical performances, gallery shows, and poetry readings in their own space. Outside of their space they host workshops and events all over the city. This month they are celebrating black writers and are hosting workshops all month. They also do a lot of work with children, which I believe is extremely important because they are our future. This includes weekly storytime, craft workshops, and other events. Art Sanctuary also serves to educate the community with workshops and classes to make art materials and skills more available to different income levels. When Ms. Val and I spoke on the phone we talked about connecting me specially with the event coordinators that she hires, and also using my visual and literary skills for marketing events. I’m the most excited about gaining real world experience in a non-profit and networking with other black leaders and artists. My hope is to begin fostering my community beyond UArts and into the Philadelphia region, and then the world as a whole.