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Donnelle Davis and Irwin Royster at the Ophelia Egypt Program Center,
displaying one of the sample canvases that will decorate
Blue
Skye Development’s Hayes Street project. |
This time of year, we start to reflect on our blessings and look for ways to be helpful to others. For the Ward 7 Arts Collaborative Inc., this November brings opportunities to do both.
Blue Skye Development Meets the Boy Next Door
Donnelle Davis is 18 years old. He’s lived in the area surrounding Hayes Street NE, off and on for several years. He’s seen his share of trouble over the years, but lately, he’s been attending GED classes and working with Irwin Royster at Planned Parenthood’s Ophelia Egypt Program Center. “Donnelle was probably one of the original crew who came in,” says Royster. “We linked [him] with the Ward 7 Arts Collaborative because he showed an aptitude for art. [Collaborative Executive Director] Ms. [Wanda] Aikens was there, and she has the attitude, the resources, the heart for working with youth on a particular project,” says Royster.
This budding artist got his first break recently when Aikens connected with Bryan “Scottie” Irving, president/founder of Blue Skye Development and Construction during the Ward 7 Business/Professional Association’s developer’s fair in September. Blue Skye is renovating an apartment building on Hayes Street, just a few blocks from the Collaborative’s office on Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue. “My idea was that if the youth who are living right next to the project had stewardship in the project in some way, they become a partner of the project and support the project,” says Aikens.
She worked with Davis to submit a proposal and samples for a series of hand-painted, canvas panels that will cover the fence in front of the construction site. The panels demonstrate his connection to the community and his desire to give back to his neighborhood. Although he had no professional training, Davis put a lot of time and effort into his artwork to show that he means business. “I actually feel good because I’m getting the opportunity to do what I really want to be doing,” he says.
His hard work paid off when Blue Skye accepted the proposal and asked him to immediately begin creating the full-size panels. The contract includes funding for materials and a stipend for the artist and the possibility for more projects once Donnelle completes the first set. The Collaborative is building his capacity to follow the process needed to complete the project, and the Egypt Center is making sure Davis stays focused on finishing his education while pursuing his craft.
“From what I saw, he does pretty good work,” says Kirk Butler, project superintendent at the Hayes Street site. He believes Davis’ panels may even have a positive impact on the workers and others who interact with the site. “They’re used to just seeing a fence or their banners on the fence. But if they take a look at a mural that somebody in the community’s done, it could be something uplifting for them.”
“Hopefully it will get to the point where people come over there and look at it,” Davis adds. “Hopefully it will touch people.”
Opera/Humanities Partnership Blooms with Art and Local History
This month also brings the conclusion of “Community in Bloom,” the Collaborative’s partnership with the Washington National Opera and the Humanities Council of Washington, DC. On Nov. 15 at 3 p.m. in the auditorium of Kelly Miller Middle School, performers affiliated with the Collaborative and the opera will present music, dance, spoken word and drumming that reflects how local residents feel about Ward 7 history and culture.
The Community in Bloom performances debuted at the Riverside Center on Sept. 19 during World Parks Day ’09. Each performance is grounded in some aspect of the oral histories that W7AC and WNO staff recorded over the summer from youth, adults and elders in the community. Melvin Deal and the African Heritage Drummers and Dancers partnered with classical vocalist Ivy Hilton to tell the audience about African-American and Native American singers from the early 20th century. This writer contributed a mini-musical blending spoken word and go-go music to take viewers on a tour of Ward 7 through the eyes of local bus drivers.
WNO lyricist Tom Mintner and composer Joshua Rich wove their impressions of Ward 7 life into a song performed by a quartet featuring baritone Louis Davis, mezzo soprano Anamer Castrello, soprano Aundie Moore and tenor Wayne Jennings. The Smothers Dance Ensemble wrapped up the afternoon with their interpretation of how the generation gap could be bridged. Visual artist Bill Howard created backdrops to support each phase of the performance.
The Nov. 15 event will be hosted by Maureen Bunyan of WABC-TV. An anonymous donor has agreed to raffle a flat-screen TV and a laptop if at least 100 people show up. Community in Bloom is one of two neighborhood-based pilot projects sponsored and funded by the Humanities Council of Washington, DC. |
