Setting: Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, CA, January 2023 

The residency kicked off with students visiting the Skirball to explore Visions and Values. All programs at the Skirball start with learning from primary sources, the real objects and artifacts that people carried with them as they immigrated to the United States. One student remarked, “Going through the exhibition made me open my mind more and notice how anything there can be turned into a story. Whether it’s a painting or actual items, there is always a background story that more can be added to.”

This kitchen tableau can be seen in the Skirball’s core exhibition, Visions and Values: Jewish Life from Antiquity to America. It represents an early twentieth-century American Jewish immigrant kitchen. We asked students to think about the conversations that might have taken place around a table like this. They created a series of scenes inspired by this display and other conversations that take place around tables—ranging from a school cafeteria to a completely devised, fantastical world. Over the course of six weeks, the students brainstormed, researched, wrote, and edited their work.

Setting: St. Mary’s Academy in Inglewood, CA, January and February 2023 

After the students’ visit to the Skirball, we moved into the classroom. Twice a week, I visited St Mary’s Academy, presented lessons on scriptwriting, and students used independent work time to collaboratively develop their pieces. Students learned how to constructively brainstorm, properly format a script to industry standards, give and implement peer feedback, construct discussion prompts for readers and audience members, and prepare for a final showcase. Their teacher shared, “This was such a valuable experience for my students who have not necessarily been given this platform and ability to share their creative work and have their voices heard on this scale. Collaborating with students to hear what they want to get out of the residency and how their ideas shape the finished product works really well.”

Setting: Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, CA, February 2023 

After much rehearsal and collaboration, we arrived at the final presentation day!  We welcomed students from local middle and high schools to check out our galleries and make art before the culminating presentation. Young people and their teachers explored Visions and Values with Skirball educators, guided by reflection questions posed in the free, downloadable Visions and Values curriculum.

They also had the opportunity to address challenging questions around family, relationships, and self-expression by making art in a reflective process. Questions written by the residency students—such as, Do you find it difficult to express yourself? And, Is it hard to talk about challenging issues, especially with parents?—were used as prompts for art-making. By posing these questions in the context of art-making, student audience members had a soft landing pad on which to broach difficult topics, leading to inspired works that had layers of tension and vulnerability.

After the audience finished their activities around campus, the showcase began. The audience was engaged, the presenting students excelled, and the event culminated in an eye-opening Q&A. When asked what the most memorable portion of the residency was, one student shared, “Being able to view all of our projects on a stage—it was such an exhilarating experience to sit and watch our work be presented in front of a live audience.” 

These celebratory and communal moments can be crucial elements in what makes or breaks our ability to build a better world—and these students recognize that. When we truly listen to one another, we open an opportunity to meet each other in a posture of kindness and welcome. 

If you are interested in attending or participating in a future Skirball residency project, please email education@skirball.org.