A collaboration with 2nd-grade students from P.S. 48 Mapelton School, Lizania Cruz’ workshop, Geography of Life II, reflected on the historical, existent, and potential futuristic forms of interdependent relationships between human and non-human life. Coming together for six 90-minute sessions, Cruz and participating students explored the following questions:
- What is interdependency, and what does it look like in our school and neighborhood block?
- How does interdependence show up in your family?
- How are we interdependent with water?
The workshops were structured through observance techniques, collaborative oral history with family, art making, and group discussion, highlighting a more interdependent way of being. As an outcome, all the work produced by the students throughout the semester—including collages, drawings, and cardboard sculptures—was installed in the school’s cafeteria for parents and caregivers to view and celebrate.
Special thanks to Lizania Cruz, studio and classroom assistant Jas Pinturas, and Principal Colleen Hogan for their dedication to this program. Geography of Life II is commissioned by Artists Alliance Inc. and presented in partnership with and support provided by the PS 48 Mapleton School.
About the Collaborators
Lizania Cruz (she/her) is a Dominican participatory artist and designer interested in how migration affects ways of being & belonging. Through research, oral history, and audience engagement, she creates projects that expand and share pluralistic narratives on migration. Cruz received the 2023 New York City Artadia Award and her newest project was commissioned by The Shed for Open Call 2023. In 2021, Cruz was part of ESTAMOS BIEN: LA TRIENAL 20/21 at el Museo del Barrio, the first national survey of Latinx artists by the institution. Most recently, she was part of 52 Artists: A Feminist Milestone at the Aldrich Museum. She has presented solo shows at A.I.R. Gallery, CUE Art Foundation, International Studio & Curatorial Program, ISCP, Alma Lewis and Proxyco Gallery. Her work has been exhibited at Sharjah’s First Design Biennale, Untitled, Art Miami Beach, The Highline, Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts and more.
Cruz has participated in residencies such as International Studio & Curatorial Program, ISCP (2022), Planet Texas 2050 Artist Resident — University of Texas (2022), Jerome Hill Artist Fellow, Visual Arts (2021-2022), Artists Circle on Climate Displacement Fellowship, Institute of Othering and Belonging, Berkeley University (2021), Center for Book Arts (2020-2021), BRIClab: Contemporary Art (2020-2021), A.I.R. Gallery (2020-2021), Robert Blackburn Workshop Studio Immersion Project (SIP) (2019), Stoneleaf Retreat (2019), IdeasCity: New Museum (2019), Recess Session (2019), Laundromat Project Create Change (2017-2019), Design Trust for Public Space (2018) and Agora Collective Berlin (2018). Her work has been featured in Hyperallergic, Fuse News, KQED arts, Dazed Magazine, Garage Magazine and the New York Times.
Jas Pinturas is a visual artist, educator, and Indigenous dancer from Sunset Park, Brooklyn. Her work focuses on cultural identity and politics, addressing the social issues affecting the working sectors of New York City. Jas earned her BFA in Fine Arts from the Fashion Institute of Technology in 2018. In 2021, she was awarded the City Artist Corps Grant. With this grant, she curated “Behind Closed Doors,” an exhibition addressing the emotional impact of COVID-19 on communities disproportionately affected by the pandemic due to systemic health and social inequities. Recently, the Brooklyn Arts Council awarded her the Creative Equations Fund: Justice, Equity, Sustainability + Performing Arts. Jas has exhibited her work in various spaces, such as the Museum at FIT, the Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural & Educational Center, and Gowanus Open Studios. During her leisure time, she advocates for culture and is a member of the Mixtec Indigenous dance troupe Tecuanes Quetzalcoatl. Currently, she works as a Teaching Artist, providing free workshops with community organizations such as Ayotl Artes, Artists Alliance Inc., and the NARS Foundation.
P.S. 48 is committed to creating a nurturing and equitable environment that fosters risk-taking and encourages lifelong learning for ALL. Students and families will have a voice and choice in their learning, think critically, and communicate effectively. We hold clear and high expectations for all members of our school community and honor the diversity of cultures, passions, and interests. We value collaboration amongst families, teachers, students, and staff to develop a school culture that emphasizes a joy and love for learning.
Artists Alliance Inc.’s In-School Residency Program, now in its second year, supports the presence of professional contemporary artists in the classroom, encouraging students to explore ideas related to personal identity, family, neighborhood, spaces of personal and shared resonance, memory, and archive, while reflecting on notions of togetherness, collaboration, and mutual exchange. AAI prioritizes the commission of artists whose personal, familial, and cultural backgrounds reflect that of collaborating students. As the in-school artist-in-residence program is dedicated to the notion that people and institutions are stronger when working together, projects encourage students to develop their work in conversation with parents, guardians, neighbors, family members, and caregivers.