The Painted Cloud

✨
🌞Join us this summer! 🌞

June 15th-July 17th
54 S 2nd St, Williamsburg Brooklyn

Young artists ages 4 years thru 10 years
work in two studio rooms + our private yard throughout the week.

🌞 8:45 am - 3:00 pm = $600 full week
🌞 8:45 am - 5:30 pm = $50 add’l per day
🌞10% sibling discount

~Weeklong sign ups!~
~Every week processes & projects change for young artists attending multiple weeks!
~Family shares at the studio are every Friday afternoon.

🔊
𝗪𝗘 𝗖𝗔𝗡 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦
𝙤𝙪𝙧 2025 𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢

𝙑𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙗𝙪𝙡𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 & 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙:
Catalyze • Transformation • Change • Full circle • Open heart • Open mind • Strength

𝗟𝘆𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀:
It never ends how it starts
It’s always different in some part
You can make a hard thing not hard
with an open heart
The shadows keep movin
The light shines through it
It all comes full circle
when you open up your mind to it
We can change things
We can be the ones
To catalyze transformation
We can change things
We can be the ones
To catalyze transformation
The loud get quiet
The wound up unwind
You can do it in time
if you start with an open mind
The colors change
They build and break
And you can do it your way
when “yes” is what you choose to say
We can change things
We can be the ones
To catalyze transformation
We can change things
We can be the ones
To catalyze transformation
Full circle
It goes full circle
Every time I make a change
It paves the way for other changes
Around and around and around and around and around it goes
Full circle
When I’m met with a mountain
With big rocks all around it
How I feel at the other side
depends on how I think about it
Because I get the strength to keep on going
Knowing I’ll be better for it
Knowing that I’ll like what I see
When I see the transformation in me
I can change things
I can play my part
I can catalyze transformation
You can change things
You can play your part
You can catalyze transformation
We will change things
We will be the ones
To catalyze transformation
We will change things
We will be the ones
To catalyze transformation
Every time I make a change
It paves the way for other changes
Around and around and around and around and around it goes
Full circle
We can change things (full circle)
We can be the ones
We can change things (full circle)
We can catalyze transformation
We can change things (full circle)
We can be the ones
We can change things (full circle)
We will catalyze transformation

Vocals: The Painted Cloudians
Concept+Lyrics:
Instruments+Lyrics:
Mix/Master: .b
W/gratitude to T.A.s &

〰️
“Yuo cna porbalby raed tihs.”

𝘖𝘶𝘳 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦.

Young artists discussed how people often talk about how ideas/topics ‘make sense’ or ‘do not make sense.’
Young artists explored 𝘞𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘥 by Louise Bourgeois–trying to read her words–even when it didn’t seem to make sense.
Together, young artists noticed that they wanted to read it, even though it wasn’t clear; that their minds searched for meaning, even though they didn’t know if the message was important.

To understand ‘makes sense’ & ‘does not make sense’, they tried a hilarious exercise by reading: “Yuo cna porbalby raed tihs.”
By noticing that these intentionally scrambled letters were still readable, young artists considered the artist’s intent. Maybe an artist has a desire to make sense -or- an artist has the desire to not make sense.

Additionally, an artist may have a desire to make sense but to go about what they want to communicate in a way that may traditionally not make sense.

Questions arose:
*How could intentionally ‘not making sense’ affect an outcome?
*Why would one choose different approaches of making sense vs. not making sense?
Young artists experimented with stamps, layering words & testing how language can still communicate—chaotically but powerfully—even when it seems unreadable or does, in fact, become unreadable.
Young artists played with “making sense” & “not making sense”.

Vocabulary exercised:
~Overlap→cover partly
~Thorough→complete w/regard to every detail
~Make Sense→to have a clear meaning
~Does Not Make Sense→confusing or irrational
~Intent→with purpose

Actions experienced:
~noticing
~exploring
~reading
~stamping
~reflecting

Answers to the questions that arose:
~Intentionally ‘not making sense’: In Louise Bourgeois’ piece, her decision to stamp in a way that does not make sense causes the viewer to wonder what she is trying to say with the words she chose to stamp & what she is trying to say by the manner she thoroughly stamped overlapping letters.
~Choosing different approaches: one may want a viewer an understanding -or- one may want a viewer to pause or wonder.

☀️

Story+Community

Bethel AK—on the Kuskokwim River—is a hub for 56 Yup’ik villages where Yup’ik practices, language, & subsistence methods remain deeply rooted. Alaska became a state recently (1959). Holding onto traditions in the face of a new govt has been…complex.

“Now we must be of two minds.”

Those who lived through statehood—forced U.S. schools, language bans, suppressed tradition—are now grandparents. Despite trauma, many resiliently worked to bring about shifts (e.g.Yup’ik Immersion Schools) to retain+revitalize culture. The youth don't have firsthand experience of pre-statehood or harsh transitions.

Story—vital in Yup’ik culture—bridges generational understanding.

YUPIULLEQ NUTEM is a stunning interdisciplinary performance born from youth-gathered interviews w/100 elders from 11 Yup’ik villages. Through story, song, & dance, youth interpreted elders’ experiences before & after statehood—offering both a critique of AK’s statehood journey & a celebration of cultural resilience.
In Kasigluk, students created paintings inspired by elders’ stories & the landscape. These were flown to Bethel to become the performance’s backdrop—then returned to hang in the village.
This return speaks to The Painted Cloud’s vision:
𝘞𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘱𝘩𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦,“𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦'. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱, 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥..𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘯𝘰𝘵-𝘴𝘰-𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘺 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦s 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘶𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴.𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘧 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘵-𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘯𝘵-𝘪𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘢 𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭, 𝘢 𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘨. 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥?

Teaching Artists
Director/Lead Interviewer: Ryan Conarro
Dance/Drumming Lead: Qacung Blanchett
Visual Lead: Sarah Conarro
Producer: Bev Williams

~𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘭𝘺 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘔𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵~

a moment of time
to engage in one’s senses
to calm and enjoy oneself
to nurture emotional-wellbeing
is a support
in building resilience needed for complex tasks,
enhancing cognitive skills
strengthening critical problem-solving skills
cultivating awareness
thinking outside the box
and paving the way
for a more conscious and meaningful journey

𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘺: 𝘞𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵; 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘦; 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘣𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴. 𝘞𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦.

💕 I am kind 💕

In the creation of this video, each young artist self-identified their own positive traits as the anchor point of their self portraits. Guided by teaching artists Sarah Conarro and Julian Bozeman, young artists worked with stop motion, watercolor, sound sampling, color pencil, vocal recording, and collaborative performance. Young artists used a variety of tools including cameras, light tables, and professional audio recording equipment. Conceptually, young artists engaged in dialogue to share how and why they self-identified with their positive traits and observed that together as a collaborative whole there are differences and variety among them….and most of all, there are similarities!

teaching artists

🌞Substack! Link-in-bio to read & to follow.🌞

Waxing poetic about arts education and our ever-developing pedagogy in action.
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In other big news::

1. Join us tomorrow to celebrate PS18 students’ incredible work in their collab with us

2. Join us for 1 week, 6 weeks, or any number between for our six week studio takeover in Williamsburg
June 17th-July 26th
3 studio rooms + big private yard ✨
young artists age 4 (b.2019) to 10 years

thank you for sharing all of the above w friends & neighbors!!

🔺🔸our ideas can make sense and not make sense at the same time 🔺🔸

~ today is the halfway point of The Painted Cloud Summer ~