Sunday, Feb 9, 2020 | 3–5pm
ADMISSION: This event is open to teens only. Free for teens; RSVP recommended at teens@thecjm.org.
Teens, are you interested in pursuing careers in the arts? Learn about a variety of jobs from the people that do them, including artists, educators, storytellers, and curators working in the Bay Area today. Our panelists—independent curator and artist Astria Suparak, artist and educator Megan Leppla, and queer cartoonist, poet, and mother Trinidad Escobar—share their unique journeys from student to professional, followed by small group discussions. All teens welcome! Bring a friend!
Trinidad Escobar is a queer cartoonist, poet, and mother based in Oakland, CA. She is an alumna of the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics and a fellow MFA Comics program at California College of the Arts. Her graphic memoir Crushed is available on her website. Her forthcoming comic novella Tryst will be published in the Philippines by Gantala Press. Her graphic novel Of Sea and Venom will be released by FSG/Macmillan in 2021.
Megan Leppla has been working as an artist and educator since 2008 in museums, public schools, independent schools, and beyond. She has shown work nationally and internationally through solo exhibitions, group shows, and artist residencies. The only thing she loves more than making things is helping other people make things. She has worked with a wide range of students, serving as a leader in schools with a focus on equity and diversity work within the context of arts integration. Her students have showcased their work at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Maker Faire, and SOMArts.
Astria Suparak is an independent curator and artist based in Oakland, California. Her cross-disciplinary projects often address urgent political issues and have been widely acclaimed for their high-level concepts made accessible through a popular culture lens. Suparak has curated exhibitions, screenings, performances, and live music events for art institutions and festivals across ten countries, including The Liverpool Biennial, Museo Rufino Tamayo, MoMA PS1, Eyebeam, The Kitchen, Internationale Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen, and Expo Chicago, as well as for unconventional spaces such as roller-skating rinks, ferry boats, sports bars, and rock clubs. Her current research interests include linguistics, food histories, diasporas, and sci-fi.
Get involved with Teen Art Connect (TAC) at The CJM! The TAC internship is a year-long paid museum internship for high school students from diverse backgrounds interested in working in a world-class arts environment creating meaningful experiences for the public while developing professional skills.
TAC Squad provides teens with a deeper connection to the CJM through workshops, artist talks, screenings, special teen programs, and more while simultaneously exploring contemporary art, identity, and Jewish culture with a community of like-minded peers.
The CJM strives for a welcoming environment for all of our visitors. In addition to ample space for wheelchairs and a friendly environment for service animals, sign language interpretation (ASL) can be scheduled for all programs with at least two weeks notice.
FM assistive listening devices (ALDs) for sound enhancement are available for all talks and tours. Please note that we would like to maintain this as a scent-free environment, and encourage visitors to refrain from using scented products out of respect for visitors with allergies or chemical sensitivities. For additional accommodation requests, please contact The CJM’s Access and Community Engagement Manager at access@thecjm.org or 415.655.7856.
Teen Programs are made possible by major support from The Covenant Foundation and U.S. Bank Foundation. These programs are part of the Jewish Teen Education and Engagement Initiative (Teen Initiative), a project of the Jewish Community Federation and Endowment Fund, with support from the Jim Joseph Foundation and a consortium of local funders. Additional support is provided by the California Arts Council, Miranda Lux Foundation, and Ira A. Roschelle M.D. Family Foundation.