PALMDALE – Antelope Valley YouthBuild, in partnership with the city of Palmdale, will be leading an “Art Walk” this Thursday to raise awareness about issues that affect residents of the Antelope Valley.
Themed “Social Investigation,” the Art Walk begins at 4 p.m. at Gabriel’s House (38553 4th Street East) and wraps at 7 p.m. at the AV YouthBuild Student Housing Project (38522 5th Street East).
The event is free and open to the community, and it will feature original works from local YouthBuild students.
“We have some paintings, posters, fliers, and we’re also going to have a ‘Slam Poetry’ competition at one of the stops during our Art Walk,” said organizer and AV YouthBuild English teacher Eric Mariscal.
The YouthBuild students/artists will be on hand to explain the concepts behind their art pieces, which are based on the following themes: homelessness, drug and alcohol abuse, domestic violence, literacy, financial literacy and teen pregnancy.
“We’re trying to raise awareness on several issues that impact our community through artistic projects that reflect our experiences and our opinions,” Mariscal said.
They’re hoping to inspire community members to be a part of the solution and not the problem.
“If we want our community to become better, we need to focus on being a more culture-centered community. We need to recognize that the largest population is the youth, and we need to establish more arts and culture activities and events centered around them,” stated AV YouthBuild History Tiffany Estrada.
Art Walk route for Thursday, March 20
4 to 4:45 p.m. – Gabriel’s House
38553 4th Street East
5 to 5:45 p.m. – Neighborhood House
503 East Avenue Q-3
6 to 7 p.m. – AVYB Student Housing Project
38522 5th Street East
For more information on the Art Walk, contact Antelope Valley YouthBuild at 661-266-8900.
More on AV YouthBuild…
Antelope Valley YouthBuild (AVYB) offers an accredited high school diploma and hands-on occupational training in construction, wildland fire technology, nursing assistant and solar technology installation through various partners to low-income youth ages 16-24.
Participants spend six to 24 months in the full-time program, dividing their time between construction and the YouthBuild Charter School. AVYB’s participants serve their communities by building affordable housing, and transforming their own lives and roles in society.
AVYB seeks to join with others to help build a movement toward a more just society in which respect, love, responsibility, and cooperation are the dominant unifying values, and sufficient opportunities are available for all people in all communities to fulfill their own potential and contribute to the well-being of others.
For more information, on Antelope Valley YouthBuild, visit www.avyouthbuild.com.
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