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Celebrate Fall – and Community

It’s that wonderful time of year. Kids are back in school, leaves are beginning to change colors, there’s a crispness in the air (that is, until it hits 80 degrees again)… it’s fall.

That also means its time for Kennedy Heights Arts Center’s Fall Harvest Party, our annual celebration of the season for the community. The free event will include festive food and drink, live music, games and raffles, and interactive art activities. It’s sure to be fun for all ages.

The Fall Harvest Party is also a wonderful opportunity to introduce new friends to Kennedy Heights Arts Center or learn more about us yourself. We will share a bit about our impact in the community and what makes KHAC special, as we kick of our 2017 annual fund campaign.

We do hope you’ll join us.

Top 10 reasons why you should take an art class

I get it. You’re busy with work and life demands, so fitting in an art class is hard. But nurturing your creative side is essential to your well-being — not to mention lots of fun.

Artistic and creative expression offers many benefits. Here’s our top ten:

1. It’s okay to make a mess!
Leave the set up and cleanup of all those art supplies to us. Our studio is bright, open, and it can handle the drops of paints, splatters of glue, and scraps of fabric all over the floor when creativity is happening. So go ahead and let the kids (or you) make a mess.

2. It relieves stress.
Your life is busy, but it’s important to remember to take some time for yourself. A recent study found that 45 minutes of creative activity significantly lessens stress in the body, regardless of artistic experience or talent. (Study published in Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, titled “Reduction of Cortisol Levels and Participants’ Responses Following Art Making” 2016).

3. It exercises a new part of your brain.
Is the creative part of your brain underfed? If you work in a highly analytical environment, then an art class is an excellent way to give your brain’s right side a rest and stretch the left side.

4. It prepares kids for the future.
Art enhances fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, problem solving skills, lateral thinking, complex analysis and critical thinking skills. And art education increases creativity and open-mindedness. Creativity is cited by business leaders as the top leadership competency for the future. 

5. You’ll look at the world in new ways.
Art makes you look at things anew – even mundane ordinary aspects of the world. Communicating with color, shape, and form awakens your imagination.

6. Get UNSTUCK.
Our inner voices make harsh critics that can stop us before we even begin. Art teaches risk taking, learning from one’s mistakes, and being open to other possibilities. The camaraderie and support of fellow classmates and an encouraging instructor can be the push that you need to just start making!

7. Challenge yourself.
Learn something new! Whether it’s a new technique, a new medium, or if art in general is something you’ve never done before – learning new things strengthens us and gives us more confidence.

8. Decorate your house/apartment.
You’ll get so much joy from creating something yourself and having it be a unique addition to your home. And when someone compliments you on the art, you can tell people YOU made it!

9. Meet new people.
Taking a class together helps you learn new things about old friends and gives you something new to talk about when you go out. And you’ll meet cool new people you otherwise may have never known. Art reaches across racial stereotypes, religious barriers, and socio-economical levels and prejudices. Seeing other culture’s creative expression allows everyone to be more connected and less isolated.

10. Rekindle your passion.
Jealous of what kids made in summer camp and you want to make something, too? Nowadays, you’ve become too busy to keep old hobbies; however, indulging in an old passion could be the perfect remedy for refreshing your spirit.

So what are you waiting for?

Send a Kid to Camp!

This summer, more than 300 diverse youth will express their creativity through making art, dance, theatre, and music at Kennedy Heights Arts Center. In 28 different camps, they will paint murals, write poetry, create their own businesses, make scary movies, dig fossils, and became the next big fashion designers.

Campers not only build skills, they build community. Racially and economically diverse kids get to know one another and develop friendships. Older students mentor younger ones and become leaders. Young people explore the world around them – and find their place in it.

And thanks to the support of generous donors like you, these amazing experiences are made available to everyone regardless of ability to pay.      At Kennedy Heights Arts Center, no one is turned away. Last year, 65 low-income students received scholarships to attend summer arts camp at KHAC – amounting to over $9,400 in aid.

Help a deserving child have a great summer by supporting KHAC’s Scholarship Fund. This year’s goal is to raise $10,000 by June 2.

Your gift of:
$35 – Sends a kid to camp for one day
$75 – Sends a kid to camp for half a week
$150 – Sends a kid to camp for one week
$600 – Sends a kid to camp for a month
$1,500 – Supports a child for the whole summer!

Contributions of any size are welcome – and make a big difference in the life of a child.

Donate Now

Teen Voices

What matters to teens? What issues do they face?

A group of six local youth, ages 12-16, used their creativity and the medium of film to create short videos that speak to teens. The group collaborated to create Public Service Announcements on teen issues including peer pressure, bullying, stress and depression.

With the help of Robert Wilson of Your Productions, the teens wrote, filmed and produced the original videos. The PSAs will play on Cincinnati community access television. 

All are invited to a film premiere on Friday, February 24 at 7pm in KHAC’s Lindner Annex (corner of Kennedy & Montgomery). Come see the final products and support our young artists!  

This project was supported by a grant from The Charles H. Dater Foundation.

Planting Seeds in December

The weather outside might be frightful, but I’m thinking about planting seeds.

Twelve years ago, the view along Montgomery Road in Kennedy Heights was a sea of vacant buildings. One of the first racially integrated neighborhoods in Cincinnati, Kennedy Heights is a lively, welcoming place. But for too long this dynamic light hid under the bushel of blight and neglect. That is, until neighbors came together to transform their neighborhood.

Into that barren landscape, residents planted seeds of hope and inspiration which sprouted Kennedy Heights Arts Center. A former funeral home became a community arts center. A vacant grocery store became a vibrant cultural campus. Neighboring properties were developed into artist studios. Now as you travel Montgomery Road, you see people gathering, children learning and expressing themselves, neighbors connecting: a community full of life.

What is the secret ingredient of our success? ART.

Kennedy Heights Arts Center employs the unique power of arts and culture to bring people together and cultivate community.

But no beautiful garden stays that way by itself; it requires nurturing and cultivation. Your contribution is needed to help us flourish.

Help us grow communities rich with hope and creativity. In a world too often divided, building community is more important than ever. 

Cultivate community in Cincinnati with your tax-deductible donation today. Your investment in Kennedy Heights Arts Center makes a big difference—to a child discovering new-found talents, to a teen building confidence, to neighbors coming together—and ensures that 100 percent of our programs are accessible to everyone regardless of ability to pay.

Donate today

The seed you plant today will produce the harvest of tomorrow.

Spreading Seeds of Happiness

These gardeners have a gift to share with the city.

On September 9, Kennedy Heights Arts Center was invited by ArtsWave to help celebrate the grand opening of the Cincinnati Bell Connector downtown. KHAC Arts Education Coordinator Mallory Feltz, artist Karen Saunders and three students rode the streetcar in fabulous costumes, passing out seed packets to all the riders.

The packets, adorned by work of local artists, promise to grow happiness, sprout hope, and cultivate community when shared.

         
Art by (left to right): June Pfaff Daley, Milissa Michel, Cedric Michael Cox

In a world that seems too often divided, its good to remember what connects us.

Arts experiences spark dialogue and bring together diverse residents. Cultural and creative exchange produces deep and lasting social change. Sharing our stories breaks down walls, builds bonds, and makes our community stronger.

These are the seeds that help our community-and world-flourish.

The Sounds of Creativity

There is a constant din outside my office. Excited voices, running feet, slamming doors.

Yep, its summertime at Kennedy Heights Arts Center.

This summer, more than 250 diverse young people will expand their creativity through art-making, dancing, acting, making music and more. They will paint murals, act like clowns, make animated films, and become the next big fashion designers. They will play games and make new friends.

Despite the noise, the mess, the interruptions by kids seeking a band-aid, I love summer at the Arts Center.  The place is brimming with energy and imagination.

Last week, kids created their own restaurants from the ground up. These young entrepreneurs wrote business plans, designed logos, constructed cardboard buildings, created menus and (pretend) food, and more. When I purchased my “latte” from the Bros Coffee Shop, I noticed these boys had thought of everything, right down to the credit card chip reader!

Campers not only build skills, they build community. Racially and economically diverse kids get to know one another and develop friendships. Older kids mentor younger ones and become leaders. Young people get to express their uniqueness and most of all, have fun.

And when camp season ends on August 15, the silence will feel like a ghost town around here.