We are very excited to officially announce (with details!) that PageSlayers was selected as a 2018 WaveMaker Grant Recipient. Along with our partners, EXILE Books, we’ll be launching a brand-new project later this year: SIDE X SIDE: a dynamic, interactive correspondence-art project that will engage with young artists in Opa-Locka and Little Haiti!
Inspired students between the ages of 8- and 10-years-old living and attending public school Little Haiti and Opa-Locka will be paired with one another as pen pals. From there, they will be given the opportunity to create correspondence art–stamps, envelopes, and other snail-mail memorabilia. Our hope is that they will learn about life in another diverse community through the lens of a new friend.
“[We] are thrilled to partner with PageSlayers to launch SIDE x SIDE, a new collaborative project to unite youth communities via correspondence and creative writing," said Amanda Keeley, founder of EXILE books. "We are really looking forward to seeing what material is generated by these young artists when connected as pen pals, learning how they perceive their neighborhoods, what they share in common, and ultimately how they will bridge their perspectives through art.”
By the end of SIDE X SIDE, the not-so-long-distance pals will meet IRL to create their own zine together. We hope this project will help students both expand their literary horizons beyond community borders and instill in themselves a civic sense of pride for where they read, write, live and play.
We are incredibly grateful for the support from Cannonball and Locust Projects and we hope to contribute to their admirable mission of providing accessible art to the Miami community via “process, presentation, production, and publication.”
WaveMaker Grants is part of the Andy Warhol Foundation of Visual Arts Regional Regranting Program. Since 2015, the foundation has awarded over 40 grants to creatives across Miami-Dade county to support projects that are non-commercial, non-institutional, stimulate critical thinking and dialogue, and expose audiences to innovative artistic practices typically under-recognized by traditional venues.
Stay tuned for updates on SIDE x SIDE, the mail art launch date, and other future events by joining our newsletter!