My name is
Amanda Almarshoud and I’m a Sophomore General Fine Arts Major with a
prospective Minor in Art History and a Concentration in Sustainability and
Social Practice. My 2013 summer internship was unexpectedly spent at the
Anthony’s Park Mobile Arts and Recycle Center. While staying in Baltimore for a
majority of the summer, I naturally took my extra time in the city to explore
interesting areas. I stumbled upon Anthony’s Park Mobile Arts and Recycle
Center in Highlandtown, right next to one of my favorite Indian/ Nepalese
grocery stores. I walked into the center, talked to two women chatting about
the neighborhood over drinks, and ended up spending the next half hour sitting
and talking with them. One of the women, Nancy, was the owner of the center and
said she was going to be selling merchandise ad running a workshop at a huge
block sale called Blockenstein the next morning. I asked if she needed help
selling items and whatnot, and she was delighted to have me help her. After
that, I continued to come into the center to see what new events were
happening, and what I could help with. I found Anthony Park to be in an
extremely diverse community that worked with a variety of artistic ventures. I
became her intern shortly after volunteering for her for some time.
When I first
walked into the center, Nancy explained her new vision for the space. I was
very excited to help her accomplish her goals. Nancy and I hosted workshops for
the children in the neighborhood most of the time. When workshops weren’t being
held, we would sell merchandise and organize supplies to make room for all the
events she wanted to be held at the center. A large component of working at
Anthony’s Park was immersing myself in the community and really getting to know
the people that lived and worked in the area. I found being a part of this
community was the most rewarding experience of my internship. Anthony’s Park serves
as an encouraging, safe, and artistic environment for children, and adults as
well. Having had the chance to contribute to the positivity in the community
through art workshops and good conversation, I feel quite grateful.
Towards the end
of my internship, Nancy and I conducted many off-site workshops for children in
many different locations. I’ve never worked with children, so being able to
facilitate their art-making process, happened to be an artistic experience for
me too. Children are so open to new ideas. I realized this through watching
them respond to my suggestions, reactions, and silliness. Also, I learned the
steps taken to formulate, prep, setup, and conduct a workshop in classroom and
festival settings. Learning how to create a fun experience for children in a
variety of locations helped me understand what can be done in certain spaces
and what can’t. This internship put me in a position to think about how others
would experience making art. Now, I plan to use more emphatic elements in my artwork.
I will also use my knowledge of offsite workshops in my public installation
work. Though I don’t want to conduct children’s workshops in the future, I’d
love to make installation that call for public interactions in interesting and
alarming locations.
