Six DC Teen Artists Exhibit Work at Sitar Arts Center En Route to Nation's Top Art Colleges

Sitar Arts Center youth credit Sitar Arts Center for providing a strong foundation, inspiration and hope in pursuing and achieving their artistic aspirations in the Re:Visions exhibit. The Re:Visions Exhibit will feature the artwork of talented Sitar Arts Center alums who have overcome obstacles in life in order to pursue their artistic aspirations. These six DC youth are attending some of the nation’s most prestigious art schools, including Parsons School of Design, Rhode Island School of Design, Savannah College of Art and Design, and California College of Art. There will be an opportunity to meet these talented emerging artists who got their start at Sitar Arts Center and to view significant creative work from inner-city youth.

Young DC Filmmakers Win Acceptance into Three Major Film Festivals and is Reviewed by the Huffington Post

Documentary Film students at Sitar Arts Center created Life as a Collage as a tribute to their art teacher, Tim Gabel, during his final months of life. They are enthusastic to see the success of film by being included in national and international festivals. George Heymont of the Huffington Post states "This film is a remarkably mature and unflinching piece of work for such a young group of aspiring filmmakers. It gives viewers some astonishing new perspectives on how art plays a role in our daily lives."

Seven DC youth, ages 10-18, learned that their documentary film, Life as a Collage, was named as an official selection at three major US film festivals: the 55th San Francisco International Film Festival (SFIFF); the National Film Festival for Talented Youth (NFFTY) in Seattle, WA; and the West Chester International Short Film Festival in West Chester, PA.

The students tackled a daunting subject in Life as a Collage by documenting and sharing the end-of-life portrait of Tim Gabel, a longtime collage and landscape painting teacher at Sitar Arts Center, who was diagnosed with liver cancer in 2010 and passed away prior to the films completion in 2011. Gabel had been teaching at the Center every Saturday for 10 years, never missing a day, until he became sick.

Read the full Huffington Post review.

Sitar Arts Center Student Featured on Harris' Heroes

Sitar Arts Center students, Forrest Penrod and Tokunbo Adedeinde are featured on ABC News Channel 7's Harris' Heroes for their work on Life as a Collage, a documentary created by seven students in Sitar’s Multimedia Writing and Documentary Film classes, in Partnership with Meridian Hill Pictures. Created while artist and Sitar volunteer Tom Gabel was struggling with liver cancer, this movie captures one teacher’s amazing dedication to his students and his art, as he reflects during the final stages of his life.

Each student, ages 10-18, took on a specific role in the production as director, producer, editor, camera operator, audio technician and music composer, supported by the team from Meridian Hill Pictures and writing teacher Livy Tracyzk. As a group, the class chose to create a tribute to the much respected and loved art teacher Tim Gabel during his last months. From storyboarding the concept to coordinating the film shoots to editing the footage, the class learned how to create a documentary, working hands-on through each step of the process. All of the music in the film was written and created by Sitar student Callye Christopher.

See the full video here.