MLAB MISSION STATEMENT


The Mobile Literacy Arts Bus (MLAB) is an artist-run, renovated recreational vehicle that exists as a flexible space open to community members’ proposals for alternative educational and cultural programming.

MLAB is the collaborative effort of the 2007-2008 Social Sculpture class at Syracuse University, comprised of 10 art and architecture students and lead by artist and Director of Community Initiatives in the Visual Arts of Syracuse University, Marion Wilson. Our mission was to transform a used, 1984 Recreational Vehicle Bus into a Mobile Literacy and Arts Bus for use by the Syracuse City School District and the greater Syracuse Community. MLAB serves as a physical manifestation of Syracuse University’s Scholarship in Action initiative, by pairing University resources with community needs in an attempt to address the staggering drop out rates in the Syracuse City School District High Schools. Through the School of Education at Syracuse University, incredible curricula that bridge photography, poetry and literacy currently exist within the public schools-- however due to a crisis of space, the schools don't always have the space or resources to house it. MLAB is this space. The bus serves as a mobile classroom, digital photo lab, gallery space, and community center. As a team, we did it all: demolition, design, and construction.

MLAB is made possible from the generous support of the School of Education at Syracuse University and Entitiative.

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

MLAB BOSTON: MassART

Last Week, several members of the MLAB Team (Jessica, Vince, Zach, and Samantha) accompanied Marion to MassArt in Boston for a lecture and workshop with SIM (Studio for Interrelated Media) students. We were invited by Kianga Ford, whom we met as the Artist in Residence at the Warehouse Gallery in Syracuse, New York. In addition to the Thursday lecture and the Friday workshop, we also put up a show of Marion's work and images and ephemera from MLAB in the Godine Family Gallery. On behalf of the whole team, I'd like to express our sincerest gratitude to Kianga, Allie and Evan (student curators), and the rest of the SIM area for making our trip welcoming, engaging, and an overall incredible experience. Thank you. We look forward to working with SIM and MassART again in the (hopefully near) future.

Following are some images from the show, lecture, and Friday morning workshop class. During the class, SIM students worked collaboratively to spacialize social issues/problems within the Boston community using architectural chalk lines. Students addressed such issues as dark pathways in parks, stray cats, noise pollution, and access to information and technology.

The Audience!


Zach at the Lectern.


Jessica and Marion hang the Show.


SIMers check out the MLAB wall of images and ephemera.


MLAB wall.


MLAB friends discuss near Marion's work.


Sam and Marion in the installation view.
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MLAB @ MassART: workshop images

Zach and Vince with Kianga Ford's SIM class.


Marion (Left) and Kianga (center, in earthy sweater/turtleneck) with the SIM class.


Board of Social Issues and Skill Sets


Terms that are both psychological and physical.


Zach and Vince giving architecturally colored feedback.


Student project dealing with access to information, modularity, convergence, etc.


Student Project addressing dark pathways in the Fens.


Noise Pollution solutions?



Stray Cats.
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Friday, January 30, 2009

MacJannet Prize for Global Citizenship

MLAB has been selected as a finalist for the MacJannet Prize for Global Citizenship!

Congratulations and thank you to all who have helped in Making MLAB a success, and for getting us to the next round of this prestigious award.

For more information about the MacJannet Prize and the Taillores Network, go here.
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Thursday, December 11, 2008

FINAL SHOW: RECEIPTS WITHOUT MEASUREMENTS

RECEIPTS WITHOUT MEASUREMENTS
Opening Reception:
December 15th, 200 5-6:30pm
Syracuse Stage: Storch Theatre Gallery
Syracue, NY



Please click on image to view full invitation in seperate window.
Hope to see you there!
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Monday, November 10, 2008

NEW FEATURES!

Hello, All!

Hope all is well! Marion, YunPei, Samantha, and I (Jessica) are back from New Orleans... and ready to finish out the semester! Sadly, there are only a few more Fowler visits before the semester is over, but MLAB will soon be working on the BLAM! zine (little magazine of student work) for the final Fowler LCP (Mr. Luwin's First Period Class w. Stephen Mahan, John C., and their class) Gallery Show at the Warehouse coming up (very quickly!) in December. More Details to come soon.

I would like to encourage all of our readers/members/fans/friends/followers to please subscribe to our new EMAIL LIST SERVE! I've just set it up, and am currently ironing out a few wrinkles, but will be sending an update every few weeks with MLAB's activities and whereabouts. There is a sign up box on the right hand side of this blog (below the NEW MLAB interior photo): just add your email, click the button, check your email, and then simpy reply to the message sent to you by the MLAB list serve. You can also just send a blank email to: mlab-subscribe@yahoogroups.com, and you should get subscribed!

I've been fooling around with some of the features on MLAB's blog (like SLIDESHOW!), so please check them out!

If you have any issues, questions, or comments, please feel free to leave a comment, or contact me at jlposner@gmail.com.

___________________________
VIDEO!!!!

Here's a small video clip from a Fowler High School session two weeks ago. During a discussion on Slam poetry, one of the students (Angel: right side of screen, second from front, wearing white hooded sweatshirt) spontaneously started playing the wooden benches, using nothing more than a pen and his hand.
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