Welcome to the official application page for the Art On The Block 2024 Residency Program. This page is exclusively for this application. This URL has not been shared publicly with anyone. Once you navigate away from this page, you will be viewing the site as a regular visitor.
Hello, my name is River. I am a Dharma musician, Buddhist student, meditator, and social worker. I am currently taking a “trust fall” into myself and reorienting my career path. Social work can be a lot of things. I chose to study social work because it has a rock solid ethical code of conduct, and it is rooted in service to others. As long as a social worker commits to embodying the social work code of ethics , it is an extremely flexible career. So, in the spirit of my “trust fall”, one of the practices I am cultivating as a social work practice, and as an artist, is the art and practice of voice work as social work, for the benefit of my self-healing, my spiritual journey, and the community.
I have a three-tiered vision for how I would utilize my Art On The Block residency if accepted as artist-in-residence. The three tiers are named after what’s known as “The Three Jewels” in Buddhism. The first tier is the “Buddha” tier, i.e. the teacher, or the empowered “Self” embodied. In the studio space, I offer and devote my body, appearance, and in-person performances to the space. My presence at the location would involve performances of original Dharma songs, the composition of new songs for an EP, and sitting in silent meditation. Visitors can enjoy live performances, help the creative process, or sit and enjoy a round of silent meditation. This tier is wholly myself — intentionally in the space — as art. All of my Dharma songs will have sources visibly cited, including any new songs composed during the residence. My emphasis on citing sources is the second tier of my creative process and how I plan to approach this opportunity.
The second tier is the “Dharma” portion of my approach; i.e. the teachings, literal words and vocabulary that I work with. Dharma song lyrics are all sourced from spiritual scripture, poets, and civil rights activists. I compose the melodies and rhythm for teachings to sail on and be enjoyed. I’ve always struggled to enjoy reading, especially poetry or spiritual texts because they can be dense and abstract. I tend to comprehend things literally, and it takes some work to connect symbolic ideas. The courage to dive into scripture was made possible by voice work and meditation to help me focus while I read. I allow myself to pause when I need to. I make lyric sheets when I find verses or phrases that move me. Each lyric sheet is hand drawn on a tablet and is its own art piece. As artist-in-residence, I would make physical copies of all lyric sheets available for sale in the gallery space.
The third tier is called the “Sangha” tier, i.e. family, collective, or otherwise called the community engagement portion. In addition to Dharma art performances, this tier is the portion where community programming would be co-created with Art On The Block staff. Some of my ideas for community programming are: voice work with individuals and groups, guided meditations, facilitating singing circles, creative appreciation circles, creative coaching, and songwriting workshops. My years in schools and early childhood settings as a social worker has given me a lot of experience working with families from many walks of life. My approach for facilitating workshops and circles is about encouraging creativity, participation, building community connectedness, and bringing people’s voices together in group song or group chanting.
The intersection of music, social work, social justice, and spirituality is a center that I find myself going towards when I feel lost. This residency opportunity would provide me space and support to help me practice my work, engage with the community, and integrate my authentic self into my career. Thank you for reading my application.
Riverstone 