problem one: a public service announcement

• Part One: Create a presentation (using visual and textual data) which is intended to focus public attention or alter viewers' perceptions regarding a socially relevant theme. Part Two: Present your work in a public setting.

• Process: (1) Select a theme or cause (e.g., waste disposal, chemical pollution; homeless people, aids, racism, energy conservation; male-female dichotomies, sexism, justice/injustice, domestic violence, homophobia, health care; civil rights, ecology, politics; counter-productive technology, endangered animal species, crime, animal euthanasia, mental illness, old-age problems, and so on.) (2) Research your topic: gather facts, images, and relevant information. (3) Generate possible options towards a creative solution (think, fantasize, imagine, relate, rearrange, deconstruct, reconstruct, produce ideas). (4) Choose your best idea and put it into action. (5) Present your work in a public setting.

problem two: community maps

• Part One: Create a map of your community, however you imagine it. Part Two: Combine your map with the map created by your "art buddy."

• Process: Before you start on your community map, think about places you go to regularly in Gainesville (like your school), places where relatives or friends live, and your favorite places. Include these places in your map and show the roads or pathways you use to get to them. Your map doesn't have to be exactly how it is in real life. You can add more things to see to make your map fun to look at. Make sure that you label all the features of your map so that others can tell what they are.

• Visit the Community Maps Project website for more information.

problem three: art that makes a difference

• Part One: Use art/design to engage an audience in in an issue of social, political, or ecological significance. You might create a work that is intended to encourage public dialogue about an socially-relevant issue (or) you might use yourself as a conduit for others to express their ideas.

  Part Two: Present your work in a public setting.

• Process: (1) Select a theme or cause (e.g., waste disposal, chemical pollution; homeless people, aids, racism, energy conservation; male-female dichotomies, sexism, justice/injustice, domestic violence, homophobia, health care; civil rights, ecology, politics; counter-productive technology, endangered animal species, crime, animal euthanasia, mental illness, old-age problems, and so on); (2) Research your topic: gather facts, images, and relevant information. Find an artist/designer who deals with this issue or whose work might serve as a "springboard" for your own work; (3) Generate possible options towards a creative solution; (4) Choose your best idea and develop a plan of action; (5) Present your plan to the class for feedback; (6) Revise your plan based on feedback (if necessary); and (7) Complete the work and present it in a public setting.

• Visit the gallery to see a few student solutions to problem one and three.