NZ Community Challenged to Raise $50,000 for Visual Arts

Friday, November 13 was a big day for Neutral Zone’s Visual Arts Programs. Immediately preceding the teen art show “FEAR,” the Neutral Zone announced a Teen with Art.jpg community challenge grant to provide two years of funding for the NZ Visual Arts Program. This challenge was built by three key supporters: Jeri Rosenberg & Vic Strecher, the Dan Cameron Family Foundation and the Leonard Marshall Kahn NZ Challenge Grant for the Arts, adding up to a total community challenge of $50,000. The deadline to raise funds to match this challenge is June 30, 2010, and in just one month, we’re over half of the way there.

At the reception for the FEAR art show, NZ supporter Swanna Saltiel gave a moving Fear Art.jpg speech about why her family foundation helped to build the challenge grant to the NZ's visual arts programs. She recounted a story about a friend’s daughter, who was struggling in high school, until the empowering experience of her first real art sale at a Neutral Zone show. That teen went on to achieve a BFA in Art and Design at the University of Michigan. The importance of the NZ was further extolled by two teen speakers, Cassidy Morary-Penchansky and Teagan Donnell. Teagan, a member of the Visual Arts Council, bravely spoke about how important the visual arts have been in helping her to deal with depression, and how grateful she was to have the NZ community to turn to for support.

Albert and Paula Berriz, who named their gift after Paula’s late father, Leonard Kahn, were inspired to give because the Neutral Zone’s Visual Arts Programs give teens opportunities to engage in real-world authentic learning that meets their needs, interests and future ambitions. "Paula and I have a strong belief that arts education is an important foundation in building 21st Century jobs. We need to keep our youth in Michigan, and do what we can to create opportunities like this to enhance that potential,” says Berriz. The Neutral Zone has a unique capacity to develop “21^st Century Skills” such as critical thinking, problem solving, leadership, creativity and innovation, because the NZ does more than simply offer art classes. Here, teens find the opportunity to become leaders of the visual arts programs, projects and collaborations.

If you are passionate about art opportunities for teens and want to help us meet this challenge, please contact Amy Milligan at amy@neutral-zone.org or 734-214-9995, ext. 223.

Top left photo: Canton H.S. student Nathan stands with his work.
Middle right photo: Painting by a student in Ms. Westfield's Pioneer H.S. Art Class.

To see more photos of teen artwork from FEAR, click here.

Big Spread T Gving.jpg Neutral Zone Serves Up Thanksgiving Feast

The Neutral Zone kicked off the holiday season on Tuesday, November 17, with a massive Thanksgiving feast attended by teens and staff from all NZ programs. The dinner was hosted by the NZ’s North Star program, who graciously baked over twenty pies; the Homeboyz, who mashed the potatoes; and the generous U of M students at Telluride house, who supplied vegetables, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, stuffing, rolls, biscuits, salad, fruit, soda, juice, cider, and macaroni and cheese. Michael Sullivan, a former NZ teen who helped to engage his friends at Telluride House as volunteers said, “one of the best parts of the experience was knowing that the students liked the food. I started packing up the casserole, thinking that it'd never get eaten if I left it in the fridge, but several of the teens said, ‘I hope you're wrapping that up for us because it was delicious’."

For more photos from the Thanksgiving Feast, click here.

Humorous & Heartfelt Poetry Night in Ann Arbor

On December 11, Neutral Zone hosted the 10^th annual Poetry Night in Ann Arbor at Rackham Auditorium. Keeping with tradition, this year’s show gave local teen poets the opportunity to share the stage with nationally recognized professional poets. This year’s show featured NZ favorite Roger Bonair-Agard, Chicago’s Kevin Coval, and former NZ staff member Lauren Whitehead, who is currently working for Youth Speaks in Oakland, CA.

The evening displayed a wide variety of teen poetry, from humorous and clever (like a piece about cell phone applications) to the more personal and heartfelt. Don’t take our word for it click here for some video clips from the event. Or read teen journalist Hilary Burch's article on Poetry Night written for CHS's Communicator.

Staff Spotlight: Trevor Stone,

Nickname: Trev or T-Stone.

Education: BFA from University of Michigan, MFA from California College of the Arts and a Teaching Certificate from Eastern Michigan University..

Job at Neutral Zone: As the Visual Arts Coordinator I work with teens to produce art shows and help the community through visual arts. I also teach various art classes throughout the school year and summer, offer individualized mentorship for teen artists, and coordinate in and out-of-town fieldtrips to art museums and galleries.

Famous For: Oddball comments at staff meetings and switching up my facial hair patterns.

Reason He Loves Working with Teens: They are old enough to hold down a philosophical conversation and young enough to act out in crazy, comedic ways. They are also plugged into the cutting edge of pop culture so they keep me up to speed with the latest musicians and Youtube videos. I learn about life and art from the teens every day.

Favorite NZ Memory: Any of the art shows or art fieldtrips because that is when art, learning, and play are the most blurred.

Where to find T-Stone when he’s not at the Zone: In the studio making art, running around in animal costumes, swimming, or on a dance floor.

A goal at Neutral Zone this year: To increase the amount of art-based social outreach projects that we do.

A Professional Goal: Do performance art in San Francisco.

Dream Vacation: ...Do performance art in San Francisco.

Neutral Zone is a diverse, youth-driven teen center dedicated to promoting personal growth through artisitic expression, community leadership, and the exchange of ideas.