Edwin Gil

Edwin Gil

Gil is an avid social activist and uses his art to bridge cultures and diverse groups living in the U.S. His Con ‘A’ de Arte (A For Art) and Art Si (Art Yes) through the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County in North Carolina, connects youth and promotes art as a vehicle to affect positive change in the community. Gil’s Home Sweet Home project achieved critical acclaim by actively involving the children of the Charlotte school system in the creation of a giant mural. As a result of this project, Gil met with then Senator of New York and current Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton, and presented her with one of his paintings.

His Nuestra Bandera, Nuestro País, Nuestro Hogar (Our Flag, Our Country, Our Home), united displaced Colombians around the world by having them place their handprints on a giant canvas. The canvas was presented in 2010 to Colombian President Alvaro Uribe during Colombian’s bicentennial celebration in Bogota. These efforts have earned Gil international recognition from the Latin community with recent awards like the Premio Nueva Generacion (New Generation Awards) and the Premio Huella Colombiana en el Exterior. In addition, Gil was named Latino of the Year by Agencia EFE joining a select group of individuals that include Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Journalist Jorge Ramos.

His most recent social art project, Flag of Hope, will see Gil travel throughout North Carolina once again collecting handprints and signatures to develop the nation’s first handprint flag made of North Carolina residents. A new project in recent years has been Painting4Diversity which works with concepts of diversity through art projects in select schools in three North Carolina cities. He has also worked with the CMS program Making It Better and a project called Ten Faces of Diversity. Two of the ten designated projects have been completed so far. He is also extremely involved with diversity workshops in the community and at local universities such as Queens University of Charlotte and UNCC. Other groups he has worked with include Leadership Charlotte and International House.

Edwin has overcome numerous obstacles to become one of America’s premier Latino Artists. In his Faces of Diversity Project, Edwin shares his story of triumph and how it helped shape his idea of social awareness through art. Edwin takes you on his journey across Europe with his Nuestra Bandera, Nuestro Pais, Nuestro Hogar (Our Flag, Our Country, Our Home) project with images and music as he tells the stories of the more than 25,000 people who participated in his global art project. Most recently, Edwin toured North Carolina with his Flag of Hope collecting handprints, stories and memories to make the nation’s first ever flag made with the handprints of North Carolinians. With these types of adventures behind him, Edwin is sure to motivate and spread his message of hope to all that encounter this feel good presentation.

His most recent social art projects is Faces of Diversity which works with concepts of diversity through art projects.

For more information on Edwin Gil or to view his art, please visit www.EdwinGil.com Here are some Articles.

EDUCATOR CONTACT INFO

edwin@edwingil.com

http://www.edwingil.com

  9401 Deer Spring Ln

7049688690

Faces of Diversity

Program description

Contemporary, conceptual artist, Edwin Gil, offers Faces of Diversity – an anti-bullying and character development tool for students with the assistance of teachers and administrators – by incorporating his post-graduate studies in psychology to open up the hearts and minds of participants. Through experiential activities, students are guided by Gil in which pieces of their personal stories and color psychology are joined together to form an 8’ X 8’ piece of artwork produced by Gil. His creation and discussions from the Faces of Diversity participants are wonderful ways for school districts to become stronger, more creative, and respectful of everyone’s life experiences. The project is designed to be incorporated into the standard topics used in each grade level and to allow teams flexibility in choosing the curriculum that their team will use as the focus of the project. Gil works hand-in-hand with a school’s character development department or diversity officer to customize a program that fits the needs of each particular school. Faces of Diversity is also available in Spanish for ESL programs or immersion / magnet schools.”

Additionally, Gil will promote diversity and strong character development to combat bullying via suggested curriculum and technology. Video via QR codes – matrix barcode readable by QR scanners on a smartphone – from selected participants will be available online to view (after parental consent when involving a student). For info, visit www.EdwinGil.com.”

Booking / scheduling contact

Edwin Gil

   7049688690

 edwin@edwingil.com

Program detail
Artistic discipline: Multi-discipline, Visual Arts
Cultural Origin: Multicultural
Program type: Out-of-School-Time
Population served:
Subject: Visual Arts
Bilingual: No
Available dates:

Any

Available times:

Any

Length of program: 90 minutes
Space / technical requirements:

It depends on how the school wants to set up the programing and this varies from school
to school. I need a space to interact with the kids for the talk and the collection of thumb prints and a space to create the art work.

Location(s):

Any

Fees / Ticketing:

Varies with site and number of students included in each project.

EDUCATION STANDARDS

NC Standard Course of Study:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.1.c Pose questions that connect the ideas of several speakers and respond to others’ questions and comments with relevant evidence, observations, and ideas.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.1.b Work with peers to set rules for collegial discussions and decision-making (e.g., informal consensus, taking votes on key issues, presentation of alternate views), clear goals and deadlines, and individual roles as needed.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.1.b, (7.1b, 8.1b) Follow rules for collegial discussions, set specific goals and deadlines, and define individual roles as needed.

NC Essential Standards:

B.V.2 Apply creative and critical thinking skills to artistic expression.

B.V.2.3 Create personal, symbolic expression as a means of communication (original, visual
language).

A.CX.2 Understand the interdisciplinary connections and life applications of the visual arts.

Cancellation Policy

30 day notification; if within the 30 days, the school must pay 50% of the cost