POSTER, CARDS AND TWO PROJECTIONS FOR GERTRUDE STREET PROJECTION FESTIVAL, MELBOURNE    

VINYL (Visionary Images Next Young Leader) is a leadership initiative that sits within the broader Visionary Images program. Formal mentoring is used to strengthen life skills in young people who are disengaged and prone to isolation and depression, or who are vulnerable and overwhelmed by the pressures of their living conditions. Young people acquire skills working with artists on distinct projects and then, in a ‘learn-one/teach-one’ methodology, pass these skills on to peers in external workshops. With support from the artist/youth mentor, young participants develop a plan for reaching their personal and creative goals. The plans are monitored and regularly updated, aiding each person’s progress and growth.

Involvement in VINYL increases participants’ confidence and self-esteem, seen in their returning to study or gaining employment, and in their capacity to be more critically engaged in the wider community. Some young people return to mentor new participants.

In projects undertaken to date the young participants gained skills in teamwork, communication, graphic design, photography, drawing, filmmaking, projection installation, event management, and sponsorship, and in developing ideas. Participants worked on two projects where the artwork was exhibited on buildings as part of a projection festival. ‘Some of us’, a series of portraits and text, used the concept of the layers beneath a person’s appearance to challenge prejudice. ‘Hole to Whole’, on the subject of ‘Dream of a World Without Racism’, was commissioned by the City of Yarra (the municipality where Visionary Images studio is based) to acknowledge the city’s commitment to the UNESCO Asia Pacific Coalition Against Racism.