grades five to twelve, to
engage their students in
hexagon “exchanges of the
heart” and join our project,
exhibit, online gallery, and
lesson plan library. Please
go to our website www.
interdependencedaynepa.
org to download all
materials.
With interdependence in mind, my
students created hexagons to send to
young Haitians shortly after the January 12 earthquake that killed nearly
230,000 Haitians. They were also participating in the International Interdependence Project IV, which focuses on
devising ways in which we can coexist creatively and collaboratively.
Another art activity included a
tree theme as a directive to a group
of children to act out the regrowth of
their forests. The metaphor that, like
the trees, the children must be nurtured and allowed the opportunity to
grow and thrive, was understood and
brought into this activity in drawing
form.
When the drawings were complete
Dave discussed them with the group.
The older children wanted to share the
drawings and send them back to the
U.S.
The Haitian hexagons were
returned to Tunkhannock, including
the photo of the Hai-
tian children holding
the Tunkhannock
gift hexagons and a
short narrative. I was
privileged to see Pat’s
class respond to this
picture with shouts
of excitement and amazement along
with the pride of seeing their hexa-
gons in the hands of the children.
The hexagon is a
visual metaphor for
interdependence, with
its potential to infinitely
link together.
Responding to Disaster
When the earthquake struck Haiti, I
sent a request to participants from the
2009 Hexagon Project, asking students
to create hexagons that would express
feelings of support and encouragement. In March 2010,
the artworks would
travel to the village
of Gwo Jan in Haiti
with Dave Porter,
an art therapist and
associate professor
of art at Keystone
College in LaPlume, Pennsylvania.
Dave’s mission was to provide a small
amount of relief in this horribly devastated area.
Hexagons in Haiti
The Hexagon Project was pre-
sented in Haiti one evening in
Gwo Jan’s makeshift school-
yard. Dave’s goal was to leave
the residents with plans for
working at recovery from
their loss and grief. That
involved sharing through art,
words, music and theatre,
the feelings, thoughts, sensa-
tions, and perceptions that
validated their experience to
others.
Dave explained that
some young people from
the United States wanted to
share their drawings with
them. He distributed blank
hexagons until he had no
more and then distributed
small sheets of paper to
those who did not get a
template. Nearly forty
children participated in
this art activity and the
older children helped the
younger children.
Combining Hexagons
From that point, a new project developed. Because Pat had scanned the
original hexagons, she then printed
them out, placed them with the Haitian hexagons and drawings, and
challenged her students to find ways
of incorporating these images into a
final hexagon.
Students are now designing an
installation that will include all of
this work for Hexagon Project Exhibit
IV at the Melberger Arts Center Gallery in Scranton, which opens on
September 3, 2010. In its fourth year,
the Hexagon Project is becoming a
vehicle that witnesses “Art Becoming Action,” making real connections
between real people in real life. We
applaud and invite these meaningful
partnerships.
Beth Burkhauser is adjunct instructor
of art education at Keystone College in
LaPlume, Pennsylvania. She is chair of the
International Interdependence Hexagon
Project. bburkhauser@msn.com
Dave Porter is professor of art and is art
education curriculum coordinator at Keystone College. dave.porter@keystone.edu
