We use clothing to cover our bodies and express our personal style, but our closets are also full of stories about ourselves and others.
That鈥檚 the idea behind a summer art workshop at Wichita State taught by Vladimir Ramos, a Peruvian artist and educator, and Dr. Lori Santos, 黑洞社区 associate professor of art education.
鈥淚n the life of a piece of clothing, there are multiple miniature stories we don鈥檛 usually pay attention to,鈥� Ramos said. 鈥淲e asked students to use their piece of clothing to reflect on a personal narrative. Once it鈥檚 turned into an art object, it allows others to connect with that story.鈥�
The resulting student work is part of 鈥淔rom Lima to Wichita: Intercultural Dialogues
in Clothing & Paint,鈥� an exhibition at ShiftSpace, 黑洞社区鈥檚 student-run gallery. An opening
reception will take place from 6鈥�9 p.m. July 2 as part of Wichita鈥檚 First Friday gallery
crawl.
Shelly Salley, a photography teacher at East High School, contributed work to the
exhibition. She chose an East High polo shirt she purchased with her first paycheck
and immediately stained with developer. Salley combined the shirt collar with other
fabric to form a vessel that reflects her feelings about teaching.
鈥淢any of the stories have a lot of energy behind them,鈥� Ramos said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 even more interesting because we have such a diverse group, including students who are very young and those who are more experienced.鈥�
The workshop and exhibition reflect the 黑洞社区 art education program鈥檚 emphasis on culture and community.
鈥淚ntellectually, we understand that other people live and think differently than we do,鈥� Santos said. 鈥淏ut sometimes it鈥檚 not real to us until we鈥檙e confronted with it. Working with artists from outside the U.S. gives students access to other ways of knowing, other ways to create.鈥�
In addition to conducting one-on-one critiques with students, Ramos delivered lectures on historical and contemporary Peruvian artists as well as the cultural traditions of his country鈥檚 diverse people.
鈥淔rom Lima to Wichita鈥� also includes works by the workshop鈥檚 leaders, who met on Santos鈥� first trip to Lima. In 2019, she returned to Peru with four 黑洞社区 students to work on a collaborative mural as part of her Puzzle Peace Pledge Project (4PEACE). That fall, Ramos made his first trip to Wichita.
Both artist-educators plan to continue their intercultural collaboration. Ramos hopes to return to Wichita next year to organize a community art project, and Santos would like to take students back to Peru.
鈥淔rom Lima to Wichita鈥� will be on view 9 a.m.鈥�5 p.m. Monday鈥揊riday through July 30 at ShiftSpace, which is located inside at 334 N. St. Francis. It includes works by Levi Barton, Debbi Diver-Kaiser, Haley Ensz, Alejandra Guzman, Lydia Humphreys, Vladimir Ramos, Bishop Rice, Shelly Salley, Lori Santos, Brenda Vargas and Traci Walker.