EAST LANSING, Mich. -- A new collaboration between Michigan State University and a Lansing neighborhood art center is helping area youths see their hometown in a whole new light.

"Patterns of Place" connects faculty-artists and students in MSU's Residential College in the Arts and Humanities with participants in an after-school program offered by the Reach Studio Art Center, located in REO Town at 1804 S. Washington Ave. REO town is located just south of the Capitol district.

In two 10-week sessions - the first of which runs through Dec. 6 - about 60 Lansing youths between the ages of 7 and 18 will work with RCAH faculty-artists and students to explore their neighborhoods through a variety of artistic media. About a dozen RCAH students are involved with the project.

Participants will use mediums such as painting, photography, printmaking and poetry to "see" and give voice to the assets of Lansing - including history, ethnic diversity, language, landscapes and architecture. They will create artworks and poems that will be exhibited in REO Town and at MSU in April and September 2010.

"Patterns of Place is a joyful exploration of the concept of place," said Laura DeLind, visiting assistant professor at RCAH. "It is a way for young people to use the arts and humanities to represent their lives and their communities." 

Ransom Eli Olds founded the Olds Motor Vehicle Co. in Lansing in 1897 and the REO Motor Car Co., also in Lansing, in 1904. The legacy of this history, along with the traces it has left on the area's built environment and diverse cultural traditions, is among the subjects explored by the project's participants.

"This is a wonderful coming together of community assets that has multiple benefits," said Alice Brinkman, director of Reach Studio Art Center. "Already, I am witnessing children's brightened faces as they are empowered by creating something of their own and supported by the developing bonds between themselves and the RCAH students mentoring them."

RCAH students agree.

"The children continually surprise me with their creativity and talent. Their joy at every stage of the art-making process has been incredibly inspirational for me," said Kendra Shirey, an MSU sophomore from Sparta, Mich. "I look forward to hearing their stories and bits of wisdom that far exceed their years every week. Partnering with Reach has truly been an amazing experience."

The Residential College in the Arts and Humanities at MSU is an undergraduate degree program for students interested in literature, history, ethics, the visual and performing arts and the study of languages and cultures. RCAH students live and take classes together in Snyder-Phillips Hall, a historic residence hall.

Civic engagement projects, like the Patterns of Place collaboration, are a central part of the college's curriculum and reflect its commitment to combining experiential learning with classroom work.

RCAH faculty and artists-in-residence participating in the project include Guillermo Delgado, Laura DeLind, Anita Skeen, Freddy Rodriquez and Mark Sullivan. 

The spring session begins Jan. 12 and runs through March 10. Applications for the spring session are available at Reach Studio Art Center or online at http://reachstudioart.org. For more information, call (517) 999-3643.

Patterns of Place is made possible by the support of the Arts Council of Greater Lansing, Inc.; PAINTS, a U.S. Arts in Education Model Development and Dissemination grant administered by the Lansing School District; Jackson National Community Fund; the Lansing Exchange Youth Foundation and individual donors. 

For photos of Patterns of Place, visit http://rcah.msu.edu/gallery/album/9.

###

Michigan State University has been advancing knowledge and transforming lives through innovative teaching, research and outreach for more than 150 years. MSU is known internationally as a major public university with global reach and extraordinary impact. Its 17 degree-granting colleges attract scholars worldwide who are interested in combining education with practical problem solving.