David Proto IN RESiDENCE at the School Bernat Metge

First days: Presentations, public space and urban art (September 2020)

Presentations between David Proto and the Year 9 students and teachers at Bernal Metge, and Let’s Experiment with ART, through an analytical game on visual culture.

Introduction to art and activism, the object of the residence.

Introduction, conflicts in public space and urban art.
Outdoor route to identify, analyse and reflect on the artistic expressions found in their urban environment.

Link to the blog of the project with reflections by the students:
https://blocsenresidencia.bcn.cat/bernatmetge2021/en-residencia-2020-21/

Pixel Art workshop (October-November 2020)

During these months, we worked on some of the contemporary problems that have caused the most concern, climate change, sexism, gender stereotyping and social conflict deriving from the current pandemic.
After a few investigation and debate sessions, it was decided to get down to action and make a street art intervention. From among the different urban art techniques, it was finally decided to base it on the graphic style of 8-bit video games also known as pixel art.

Link to the project’s blog for this action:
https://blocsenresidencia.bcn.cat/bernatmetge2021/street-art-pixel/

Link to the video of the first Street Pixel Art initiative.
https://youtu.be/RN87KMo3jZo

Second Pixel Art initiative at the school (November-December 2020)

The previous Street Art initiative was shared and disseminated during these weeks. They also continued exploring the topics of interest by emphasising the problems of sexism and gender stereotyping. After a few debates, it was decided to perform a new ephemeral intervention reflecting from a gender perspective, which in this case would be over one of the entrance doors to Institut Bernat Metge,  Using Post-it notes of various colours as material, a large-scale intervention was carried out, going from working in small groups or committees to working as a group.

Link to the project blog with the student’s evaluations:
https://blocsenresidencia.bcn.cat/bernatmetge2021/reflexions-de-lalumnat/

The construction of the collective identity (January-February 2021)

During these months affected by lockdown, work sessions are carried out in class and online to research a collective identity that represents, in one form or another, with more or less intensity, each one of the people involved in the creation process (students, teachers, artists and mediator). Using a brainstorming session as a strategy to define a name is just one of the actions and participative dynamics that aided in specifying common objectives.

Mash-up session (17 February 2021)

Halfway through the creation process, the learning from the project is shared with the secondary education teachers at the school and the heads of the IN RESIDENCE programme.
Official presentation by the Bernart group.

Link to the project’s blog for this action:
https://blocsenresidencia.bcn.cat/bernatmetge2021/video-presentacio-oficial-del-collectiu-bernart/

BERNART GROUP: First actions (March 2021)

During this month  they carried out actions in public spaces to make themselves known, to explore the concerns and needs of the residents living in the Verneda i La Pau neighbourhood. Through interviews with people living in this area, problems related to violence and the feeling of a lack of security were detected.

In the classroom, the group participated in a graphic design workshop, where they learned printing techniques; they worked with screen printing and created stamps in preparation for the following actions. Aspects that were associated with the construction of a group identity.

Link to the project’s blog for some of the actions:
https://blocsenresidencia.bcn.cat/bernatmetge2021/primeres-accions-de-bernartcollectiu/

Mapping of spaces and urban activism strategies (April-May 2021)

The work continued during these months on the concerns detected among the students of Bernat Metge and the residents of the neighbourhood: environment and violence. They also explored possible spaces to carry out the artistic interventions, researching walls and urban furniture, with the aim of making the problems visible from another place, generating new meanings in the public space, activating reflection and breaking them down and reversing their origin from a collective response.

BERNART GROUP: Preparing for the public presentation (May-June 2021)

A few days before the public presentation of the project, the Bernart group defines how they imagine the upcoming actions in the public space will be:

  • Subject: Sant Martí district
    Presentation of facts and grounds: Place: Plaça de la Palmera, Sant Martí.
    Surface: the three cylindrical structures located in the centre of the square.
    Date: 18 May - 1 June 2021
    Time required: 6 hours
    Reason for the mural: The artistic intervention will be carried out by a group of students from the Institut Bernat Metge within the framework of the IN RESIDENCE programme promoted by Barcelona City Council and the Barcelona Education Consortium. https://www.enresidencia.org/
    Request: Use the surface of the cylindrical structures in order to add information relating to the effects of pollution and climate change.
    The materials to be used will mainly be adhesive vinyl and spray paint.
     
  • Subject: Sant Martí district
    Presentation of facts and grounds: Place: Plaça de la Verneda, 08020
    Surface: The two cylindrical structures located in the square.
    Date: 18 May - 1 June 2021
    Time required: 5 hours
    Reason for the mural: The artistic intervention will be carried out by a group of students from the Institut Bernat Metge within the framework of the IN RESIDENCE programme promoted by Barcelona City Council and the Barcelona Education Consortium.

Request: Use the surface of the cylindrical structures to add a graphic work that speaks about violence and discrimination.
The materials to be used will mainly be adhesive vinyl, spray paint and printed paper.

***Data extracted from the permits to paint a mural on the public road