Santa Susana High School

Creating an Art Benefit for Homeless Shelters

Kayla Hamburg
CP English 12
White
November 19th, 2015

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Outline
I.

II.

Introduction
a. What my senior project is
b. Topics Im researching
c. Thesis
Research
a. Body 1: Hope of the Valley
- TS: An example of a homeless shelter that could be the recipient of the funds
raised is Hope of the Valley.
- Programs already set up there
- What funds they have and hope to obtain
- http://www.hopeofthevalley.org/
b. Body 2: How to Put together an Art show/benefit
- TS: Holding an art benefit requires a lot of work and commitment.
- http://drawpj.com/how-to-hold-your-own-art-exhibition/
- http://drawpj.com/your-art-exhibition-checklist/
- http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/arts/class_songs.html
- http://hubpages.com/education/How-to-Direct-a-High-School-Play-Castingthe-Show
c. Body 3: Emotional expression in the art
- TS: By holding an art show with emotion based art it raises awareness for
homeless shelters and the emotions of the people living in poverty through the
art.
- http://counselingforall.org/using-art-to-enhance-emotional-expression-healing
- http://www.photopathway.com/expressing-emotions-through-photography/
- http://www.vocalist.org.uk/tone_emotion.html
d. Body 4: How Art helps people with development
- TS: Art is a huge impact on people and their character development,
-

especially those in economical situations.

http://www.newschool.ie/_fileupload/Image/artsinvolvement.pdf
http://www.artsedsearch.org/summaries/the-role-of-the-fine-and-performing-

arts-in-high-school-dropout-prevention
- http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/pdf/10.2105/AJPH.84.2.260
e. Body 5: Location and Advertising
- TS: A part of holding an art benefit is location and the use of advertisement of
-

the event.
http://drawpj.com/where-to-hold-your-first-solo-exhibition/

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- http://drawpj.com/how-to-artist-press-release/
Conclusion
- Thesis
- How findings of the research section will be used to design the senior project

III.

in a way that will avoid problems, creating an efficient logical plan.

Introduction
I want to hold an art benefit to raise awareness and funds of homeless shelters though the
expression of different types of art. I want to include fine arts, photography and music in the
form of instruments and vocal. To sufficiently put this project into effect I think I will need to
research the topics of homeless shelters in my community, how to put together an art benefit,
how to express certain emotions through art, how homeless or children in poverty are effected by
the arts, and things required such as a location and ways to advertise. I feel that it is going to be
hard for the artists to convey emotions felt by the residents of any homeless shelters however it is
important that the art exhibited represents the sadness of people living in poverty. I feel that the
arts are very important in childrens development because I know it was important in mine and I
think this project needs to bring attention to children in homeless shelters specifically. Art shows
provide a much deeper meaning to them then what is shown at the surface and can be very
difficult to put together.
Research

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An example of a homeless shelter that could be the recipient of the funds raised is Hope
of the Valley. Hope of the Valley is a rescue mission that looks to help those in Los Angeles
whom are hurting and focus on each person spiritually, emotionally and physically (Hope of the
Valley-Mission). They have two programs for transitioning males and females; the House of
Hope for men and Genesis House for women and children. It teaches people to plan for long
term solutions after they leave the rehabilitation centers, so they can enter life again with a job
and somewhere to live (Hope of the Valley- Shelters). They also have a day center where they
provide residents with a computer center, case management, recovery services, life skills, and
support classes for all (Hope of the Valley-Day Center). Hope of the Valley makes it very easy
for outsiders to help in any way they can. They provide easy access to volunteer forms and
opportunities. The Thanksgiving season is very big and they set a goal of how many meals they
wish to achieve by the holiday, this year it is 9971 meals. They make donating very simple and
provide exactly what your contribution helps with, such as the exact number of meals bought
with your donation (Hope of the Valley- Ways to Help).
Holding an art benefit requires a lot of work and commitment. When creating an art
show, start out with making sure that your art is good enough. Next make sure that there are
people that will come to see your art by promoting the show. Also make sure you have the
perfect location so that it is easy for people to get to, but it is pretty or extravagant. The location
sets the mood of the entire art show (How to Hold Your Own Art Exhibition). After securing the
location, map out the space and plan how things will be placed at the venue. Plan any extra
decorations that are needed. Make a show order, as well as programs of when things will be
happening throughout the night. Make sure all food is planned beforehand and who is bringing
what is known. All sale prices or biding that will be happening needs to be well presented or

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announced several times throughout the night (Your Art Show Check List). Casting the
entertainment is the first step in having any entertainment. Make sure that you like to work with
everyone in your show because if you dont like them they will be hard to work with (Casting the
Show). After casting, make a clear set of what will be performed and what order. Then make sure
you have a rehearsal schedule and everyone is aware of it. Dress rehearsal and tech rehearsal are
important to have before the event and make sure everyone is there with all the correct utilities
(Rehearsal- Hilbrandt). There are many songs written that portray the emotions of a homeless
shelter such as Allentown by Billy Joel and Homeless by Paul Simon. (Gorski)
By holding an art show with emotion based art it raises awareness for homeless shelters
and the emotions of the people living in poverty through the art. Art is a very therapeutic form of
expression. Art is often a more effective form of communication than words because it allows for
a subconscious expression (Henoch). Conveying emotions through photography is not easy but
many things come into account, such as; light, color, composition, and focus. If any of these
components are not just right then the emotion will not be conveyed correctly or as powerfully
(Greg). In order to perform vocal pieces with the correct emotion, you must read and analyze the
lyrics, as well as the mood of the song and music. Tone needs to be perfectly placed to be able to
show the correct emotions that the song was written with. If the wrong tone or mood was used
for a song then the powerfulness would be ruined. Performing with emotion during all rehearsals
in order to get a feel for the song is extremely important and leads to a very powerful and
emotional performance (Tone and Emotion).
Art is a huge impact on people and their character development, especially those in
economical situations. Most sheltered homeless children in Los Angeles County require clinical
evaluation for serious emotional and behavioral problems and severe academic delays,

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(Zima). Kids in low income situations have very little emotional outlet and it causes
educational and intellectual delays, as well as the loss of any motivation to do better.
Forty-seven percent of homeless children scored at or below the 10th percentile in
receptive vocabulary, and 39% had a severe delay in reading. That is, when asked to
identify which picture corresponded to the spokenword, almost half the homeless
children functioned at or below the lowest 10th percentile for children of the same age in
the general population, and almost 40% demonstrated reading skills at or below the
lowest decile, equivalent to an F letter grade, (Zima).
This was shown in a study testing the emotional and behavioral levels of sheltered homeless
children in Los Angeles and it proves that there are correlations between low test scores and
living situations. Studies show that students that participate in art or music have higher test
scores then students with little involvement (Catterall). Children are 20 times more likely to be in
a depressive state when in stressful financial situations at home (Zima). By participating in
theatre, people learn conflict resolution skills; improve skills and many other life skills that help
you with any career (Catterall). A study shows that students are more likely not to drop out of
High School if they are involved in arts or theatre. This comes to prove that by being in the arts,
you become more engaged and motivated (Barry).
A part of holding an art benefit is location and the use of advertisement of the event.
Suggested locations to hold an art benefit are; local public galleries, a hotel, community halls,
empty shops, restaurants, offices, your own home, or someone elses home (Wider- Where to
Hold Your First Solo Exhibition). To achieve any type of advertisements, flyers or information

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sheets need to be sent out to as many places as possible and they need to be well organized and
clear (Wider- How to Become Famous in the Newspapers with a Artists Press Release).
Conclusion
Art shows provide a much deeper meaning to them then what is shown at the surface and
can be very difficult to put together. In order to make sure things go smoothly and the way I
envision it there are a lot of topics that need to be researched and thought through before the big
event. Researching processes of how to put together an art show are very important and I learned
things such as floor plans that I would have never thought of, if I had not done this research.
Looking into the art process will make it easier to convey to my artists what I want at the benefit.
It is also very important for me to know what I want my cause to be and thats why I did some
research on Hope of the Valley. Lastly I wanted to do some research on how this benefit relates
to my cause, and how children in homeless shelters or low income situations should be shown
the world of art. I think that by researching all of this my project has a deeper meaning,
background knowledge and will run much smoother then it would have without this information.

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Work Cited
Barry, N. "The Role of the Fine and Performing Arts in High School Dropout
Prevention." ArtsEdSearch. Florida State Univerity, 1990. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.
<http://www.artsedsearch.org/summaries/the-role-of-the-fine-and-performing-arts-inhigh-school-dropout-prevention>.
Catteral. This Research Was Supported By The Ge Fund. It Is Contained In, and Champions Of
Change. Involvement in the Arts and Human Development: General Involvement and
Intensive Involvement In Music and Theatre Arts (n.d.): n. pag. New School. UCLA
Graduate School of Education & Information Studies, July 1999. Web. 5 Nov. 2015.
<http://www.newschool.ie/_fileupload/Image/artsinvolvement.pdf>.
Greg. "Expressing Emotions Through Photography." Photo Pathway RSS. N.p., 20 July 2010.
Web. 06 Nov. 2015. <http://www.photopathway.com/expressing-emotions-throughphotography/>.

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Gorski, Paul C. "Songs about Class, Poverty, and Economic Justice." Songs about Class,
Poverty, and Economic Justice. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.
<http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/arts/class_songs.html>.
Henoch, Katherine. "Using Art to Enhance Emotional Expression & Healing."Using Art to
Enhance Emotional Expression & Healing. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.
<http://counselingforall.org/using-art-to-enhance-emotional-expression-healing>.
Hilbrandt, Donna. "How to Direct a High School Play - Rehearsals."HubPages. HubPages, 15
Aug. 2013. Web. 06 Nov. 2015. < http://hubpages.com/education/How-to-Direct-a-HighSchool-Play-Rehearsals>
Hilbrandt, Donna. "How to Direct a High School Play - Casting the Show."HubPages.
HubPages, 15 Aug. 2013. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.< http://hubpages.com/education/How-toDirect-a-High-School-Play-Casting-the-Show>
"Homepage." Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.
<http://www.hopeofthevalley.org/>.
"Tone and Emotion." Vocalist. N.p., 16 May 2013. Web. 5 Aug. 2015.
<http://www.vocalist.org.uk/tone_emotion.html>.
Wider, Stuart. "How to Become Famous in the Newspapers With an Artists Press Release - The
Complete Online Drawing Certificate Course." The Complete Online Drawing
Certificate

Course. N.p., 23 Dec. 2012. Web. 06 Nov. 2015. < http://drawpj.com/how-to-

artist-press-

release/>

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Wider, Stuart. "Your Art Exhibition Checklist." The Complete Online Drawing Dertificate
Course. N.p., 2 Aug. 2008. Web. 5 Nov. 2015. < http://drawpj.com/your-art-exhibitionchecklist/>
Wider, Stuart. "Where to Hold Your First Solo Exhibition - The Complete Online Drawing
Certificate Course." The Complete Online Drawing Certificate Course. N.p., 02 Aug.
2008. Web. 06 Nov. 2015. < http://drawpj.com/where-to-hold-your-first-soloexhibition/>
Wider, Stuart. "How to Hold Your Own Art Exhibition - The Complete Online Drawing
Certificate Course." The Complete Online Drawing Certificate Course. N.p., 02 Aug.
2008. Web. 06 Nov. 2015. <http://drawpj.com/how-to-hold-your-own-art-exhibition/>.
Zima, Bonnie T., MD. "Emotional and Behavioral Problems and Severe Academic Delays
among Sheltered Homeless Children in Los Angeles County." APHA Publications.
American Journal of Public Health, Feb. 1994. Web. 5 Nov. 2015.
<http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/pdf/10.2105/AJPH.84.2.260>.