Meet the Youth Leadership Cohort

Three terms a year (Fall, Winter, and Spring), three teens join the New Art Center as youth leadership interns.

        We asked our Winter Cohort a few of our questions about their goals and inspirations:

Koda DeSelms, Newton North High School:

1) )What role do you think art plays in personal development and community building?

I believe that art is in itself a tangible formation of feeling.

In so many cases, this isn’t even the mission of the artist, but it just happens to take this form. This means, at least to me, that creating art is processing feelings and emotions. As for community building, people can interpret art in different ways because that is how it fits into their own situation and experience best.

This means that many different people can find many different ways to connect to one piece. Does this also mean that many different people can find many different ways to connect with each other?

2) What kinds of art or creative forms do you enjoy exploring the most, and why?

If this is talking about mediums, I’m a big fan of watercolor, printmaking, and ink drawing.

I think they can be really expressive in different ways.

For example, watercolor is very flowy and free, while printmaking (lino being my favorite) is very sturdy since it limits the amount of different values you can use. While both of these mediums can feel “limiting” in a way,

I believe that to get the best use out of any medium is to follow its rules and, in a way, collaborate with it.

3) In what ways do you think the New Art Center can attract and inspire more young people to get involved in art?

Displaying art by artists who may have gone here previously and their current work/ famous artists from early/teenage and childhood years. Not necessarily “good”→ (demonstrating the idea that it’s never too late to start loving art and that everyone starts somewhere)

Bridget Register, Needham High School:

1) What inspired you to become a youth leader at the New Art Center, and how has the experience impacted you?

I became a youth leader at New Art because I enjoyed the time I spent here as a student and volunteer in the past, and I was interested in learning more about how a non-profit works in general and work towards bringing more art into a community. The experience as a youth leader has been really enjoyable; everyone here is welcoming, and I’ve enjoyed getting to know the other interns!

2) What do you think are the most important skills or lessons you’ve learned so far as a youth leader?

I think one of the most important skills I’ve learned during the internship so far is learning how to build my resume, what to include, what not to include, and how to format the resume because those skills will follow me throughout the course of my life.

3) What are some ways the New Art Center can foster stronger relationships between the youth leaders and the rest of the community?

I think a great way to engage more young people with art, and specifically the New Art Center, is to use social media, especially if the focus is middle schoolers or teens. As a teen myself, the majority of the things I buy or courses I sign up for I first saw on Instagram or TikTok, so I think increasing advertising online in vibrant, creative, or even funny/unserious ways I think could engage more teens!

Lily Kugell, Newton South High School:

1) What do you think are the most important skills or lessons you’ve learned so far as a youth leader?

The most important skills I’ve learned as a youth leader are how to have a career as an artist. Through our interviews with employees at the center, our research on art jobs, and our resume-building, I’ve learned a lot about what it takes to make a living as an artist.

2) What kinds of art or creative forms do you enjoy exploring the most, and why?

I enjoy collage and photography because I enjoy taking found items that people might not consider art and turning them into art by making a collage or taking a photograph. With my photos, I often use editing tools that distort the image into something almost unrecognizable from the original image, changing the viewer’s perspective on the original subject matter. I have a similar goal for my collages, and I try to create layered images that have multiple interpretations or that combine everyday objects in new ways.

3) If you could invite any artist, past or present, to visit the center and work with the youth, who would it be and why?

If I could invite any artist to the center, I would invite Faith Ringgold to teach a class on narrative quilt making. I love her art, and I think it would be both educational and a chance for the students to tell their own stories. I think encouraging students to experiment with new mediums will boost their creativity and inspire new ideas.

Our Youth Leadership Program is funded by the YouthReach grant through the Massachusetts Cultural Council.