“The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera.”
(Dorothea Lange)
In-School Programming + Residencies
Professional Development
It was through Light Painting that I was invited to become an Adjunct Professor of Photography at Farmingdale State College (SUNY) in 2019 where I continue to teach photography fundamentals classes.
My three years of participation as a Teaching Artist with the Patchogue Arts Council’s Partners in Education, Arts, & Community Empowerment (PEACE) Project since 2023 has facilitated bringing the magic of Light Painting to younger audiences and into local schools.
Engaging in the Light Painting process allows users to play and create freely and to resonate emotionally with music, other art forms and concepts without restraint.
The more I am witness to the magic of this medium, the more evidence I see that immersive experiences of wonderment and curiosity, allow us to easily connect to the very essence and freedom of who we are through interactive movement.
Light Painting is a formula for deep learning disguised as creating wild tapestries in light, making learning and creating both fun and habit forming!
CURRENT & AVAILABLE PROGRAMMING
KINETIC CANVAS
Music Interpretation through Movement + Color + Light
In Parntership with Paolo Bartolani
Classical Pianist & Founder of Rites of Spring Music Festival
KINETIC CANVAS is an immersive, multi-media experience where students start with a blank “canvas” and create a musical story inspired by themes from nature, history, a style of music or a composer, even topics covered in other classes including literature or the sciences. Going beyond reading music, students explore how and why music connects us emotionally and culturally.
This program was developed to blend music expression, visualization through movement, and new media technology to foster rigorous learning, ideation and connection across all skill levels, cultures and abilities. In four sessions, students form an improvisational ensemble and “Choir of Sound,” brought to life through Light Painting Photography they are taught to utilize in creative teamwork. Video Light Painting together with behind-the-scenes filming of the entire process complete the 3D canvas.
Grades: Middle to High School; No class size limits
Location: In-School Music & Arts Classes
Locations taught: Islip High School, Spring 2024; North Fork Arts Center (NFAC) at Sappan Theatre in Greenport, NY, Summer 2024; In the works: Greenport High School, Proposed for Fall 2025
Duration: 4 Class Session Minimum
Categories: Media Arts, Visual Arts, Photography, Music, New Media, Digital Media
Prerequisites & Equipment:
Music – All skill levels welcome. Any instruments can be used. An existing score the students are working on can be incorporated into the program but not required.
Art — All skill levels welcome. DSLR cameras, tripods and light tools are provided at no additional cost for teams of no more than 6 students. School-provided DSLRs welcome but not required
Arts Standards & Student Outcomes:
Inclusive of all skill levels, abilities, including Non-English Language Learners
Welcoming and Affirming Environment
Rigorous Instruction
Inclusive Curriculum
Professional Learning
Options: This program can culminate in a live performance and/or as a high-quality post-production video project (sample videos of each provided on this page) with media files provided for social media and press promotion. Changes can be made to the program to accommodate specific music and/or art curriculum, preferred themes or other requests.
Availability: Arrangements can be made to host this program at your school or institution through BOCES soon, or as an independent residency. Contact me for information.
ABOUT PAC PEACE PROJECT
Partners in Education, Arts, & Community Empowerment (PEACE) was inspired by ten years of research conducted by Eastern Suffolk BOCES with funding from the US Dept of Education, which found that learning experiences planned in schools among teachers, artists, and cultural organizations strengthen student critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and creativity, often known as 21st Century skills. As an ambitious and leading arts organization of Long Island, the Patchogue Arts Council is proud to continue the work and research this project has established.
ADDITIONAL IN-SCHOOL PROGRAMS
KINETIC HISTORY
Bringing History to Life with Light + Color + Movement
LESSONS ILLUMINATED
Experiential Learning through Applied Light Painting in the Classroom
NEXT-GEN PHYS ED
Using Motion Studies in PE & Sports to Illuminate Biomechanics
MULTI-LINGUAL VISUALIZATIONS
Student Graphic Bio’s combining Hand-Drawn Pages with Light Painting Cover Image
Program descriptions coming soon…
A Day of Art Professions 2024, Steinert High School
ARTWORKS
Trenton NJ’s Downtown Visual Arts Center
In an age of digital take-over, it is refreshing and re-affirming to see students use their full (or partial as able) body movements in service to their exploratory nature and imagination… and to see them so engaged in the creative process that they don’t want to stop!
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
(Maya Angelou)
© All rights reserved. All images copyright Alina Wilczynski