Howl High Teen Arts Program
The Howl High Arts Program is an 8-part series for high school students, featuring free hands-on workshops and presentations. Howl Education collaborates with emerging and established world-class artists from the Lower East Side community to facilitate classes in a wide variety of artistic mediums. Each program is designed to be accessible to all participants, regardless of their previous experience in art-making. These workshops include (but are not limited to) street art and graffiti, photography, community collectives, spoken word, drawing, painting and collage.
The course objectives are to offer students opportunities to produce, assess, evaluate and reflect upon their work and that of others; to establish individual areas of interest, to learn to think. While exposure to art-making is a major objective for participants, there is a keen focus on social and emotional learning through Howl High. This effort is designed to help to ensure that teens apply the skills they learn to art-making to a wide array of settings, including life-skills, critical thinking, growth mindset and character building. Positive identity and social capital are identified as key components to building a strong foundation for teens participating in the Howl High Arts Program.
Program Overview
The program involves activity-based workshops facilitated by artists from the Howl community where participants produce individual works as they learn skills and techniques. Students will develop a capstone final project resulting in a gallery exhibition at Howl. Field trips, artist talks and gallery tours round out the Howl High experience. Program participants also gain exposure to career opportunities available in galleries and museums through mentorship by Howl staff. A Master Teaching Artist, skilled in many artistic disciplines with significant art education experience, supports students through the four week program and guides them through the completion of their capstone final projects.
The Howl High Teen Arts Program is offered at no cost for participants and all materials are provided. Due to space limitations, an application and interview process is required. Previous experience in art is not required and students at all skill levels are welcome. The Howl High student is curious, willing to explore new materials, push creative boundaries and expand imagination. Selected participants are expected to complete all ten sessions of the program and the final capstone project.
Howl High meets for two hours on Thursday and Saturday afternoons from 12 pm – 2pm. While preference is given to teens attending Title I and Community Schools in the Lower East Side and East Village, high school students throughout the five boroughs are also encouraged to apply. Metrocards and snacks are provided.
Howl High Session 1 ( 2020 )– Protest Art Artist Statement Excerpt from Destiny J. 
The piece presented was meant to speak on the stigma surrounding both mental health and being a part of the LGBTQ+ community. As seen in the piece I wrote the words “Let it out” and “It’s okay” around a pair of eyes that are crying tears that are rainbow-colored. The piece can be interpreted either way and is really up to the viewer looking at it. The intention of the tears being rainbow-colored was a representation of someone that is a part of the LGBTQ+ community finally “letting it out” despite having to hold it due to the discrimination and isolation one can go through when being a part of the community. They also represent the sediment that mental health doesn’t have to always be looked at as something to be ashamed of and bottle up.
-Destiny J.
This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
Howl High is made possible by a generous grant from Disney.
