At Self Help Graphics, Advocating for Community is Essential to the Arts
By: Natalie Godinez
The last 6-months of the year at Self Help Graphics have been a space for growth and renewal. We have grown our youth programs, solidified partnerships, and continued creating spaces for our community to come together.
SHG Youth Committee 2022 ofrenda.
Noche de Ofrenda: Creating space for community
During the Self Help Graphics Annual Día de Los Muertos season, we had our Noche de Ofrenda, or night of altars, return to our home after ten years at Grand Park. Bringing the celebration back was an opportunity for us to invite the community to hold space for their loved ones or a cause they wanted to honor. We were able to offer space for the mourning of two artists in our community who passed away earlier this year, Amos Menjivar and Noni Olabisi. Friends and family of the two artists created beautiful installations of remembrance featuring personal items and offerings. Additionally, 14 artists and organizations built altars addressing issues from housing justice, to domestic violence, to immigration, among others. Lastly, our Community Altar, created yearly by Master Altarista Ofelia Esparza and her daughter Rosanna Esparza Ahrens, was featured in our parking lot. The altar allowed the public to leave photographs and items that reminded them of their loved ones who had passed.
Creative Labs
This fall semester, we continued Creative Labs, our ongoing partnership with Mendez High School, a program that enhances student engagement by integrating art in the classroom setting. This semester two teaching artists from our community, Alfonso Aceves of Kalli Arte and Joe Galarza, joined forces with a 9th Grade English class teacher, Mr. Ball, and a 12th-grade US government class, Ms. Gallego, respectively. The 9th grade English classes focused on the themes of identity and community and created Papel Picado-like artworks out of unconventional materials, with symbolism and imagery related to their identities. In the 12th grade class, Galarza led students through the creation of a zine focused on the 7 Zapatista principles and how they compare to our current system of government in the US. We hope to continue growing this program by collaborating with other teachers at Mendez HS and other schools in the future!
SHG Youth Committee
Earlier this year, we welcomed our fourth Youth Committee cohort, our biggest group yet, at 16 members, as many of our past participants decided to stay with us for another year! Our 2022-23 cohort are Aaron Diaz, Sol Aguilar Ramirez, Tony Valentino, Anthony Perez-Perez, Ariani Ray, Carlos Cano, Dani Marin, Eztli De Jesus, Ixchel Cruz, Karen Perez, Karla Guzman, Maddy Rubio, Esabella Gerardo, Paulina Jimenez, Robert Hernandez, and Velketh Mendizabal.
We are grateful to continue growing our youth programs and to create a space that is welcoming to the community. So far, they have worked on the annual tradition of a youth-led altar for our Día de Los Muertos celebration. The cohort collaborated on a beautiful installation honoring the lives of youth and children lost at the hands of mass shootings across the country in 2022. Additionally, they created special items, succulent arrangements, and clay creations to fundraise for an organization fighting against gun violence during our holiday marketplace.
Youth Artivism Internship
In November, we welcomed our third cohort of Youth Artivism Interns, Michelle Montenegro, Danielle del Rosario, and Alegria Lopez. The three young artists and activists will lead arts and advocacy work for ten months with Self Help Graphics, and Eastside LEADS. The cohort will focus on a new campaign SHG has embarked on as part of a coalition in 2023, titled “Stop the Gondola”. The campaign advocates for the halt of privately funded transit development project, to build a high-capacity Gondola in the sky in the local neighborhood; initiating from Union Station to Dodger Stadium. You can learn more at stopthegondola.org.
As we approach 2023 and look forward to renovating our building, we will continue fostering relationships that can impact the SHG community and beyond. Keep up with our youth programs and community work by following us on Instagram @shgyouth and @shg1970.
Natalie M Godinez is an artist, mother, educator, and Self Help Graphics & Art’s Community Engagement Manager.