Posting Date: April 21, 2010
KSU students use art to serve local community
Artist's book project designed to raise awareness
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(From left) Natasha Lovelace Habers, Jordan Rice, Deanna Roland, Kristel Nubla and April Marten at the C.H.O.I.C.E.S. expo |
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Local students participate in art activities at the expo Photos courtesy of Kristel Nubla |
Earlier this spring, Assistant Professor of Art Natasha Lovelace Habers received a Creative Activities and Research Experiences for Teams grant from the Kennesaw State University Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning. The grant was for the development of an interdisciplinary artist's book proposal. With a team of four KSU students, Lovelace Habers has joined forces with a local non-profit agency, The Center Helping Obesity in Children End Successfully (C.H.O.I.C.E.S.), to aid in the development of the book.
On March 27, the center held its 5th Annual Children’s Nutrition Education and Physical Activity Expo at the Adamsville Recreation Center in Atlanta. The expo, with more than 2,000 parents and youth participating, included fitness activities, free health screenings, cooking demonstrations and nutrition exhibitions.
For the expo, Lovelace Habers and visual art students April Marten, Deanna Roland, Kristel Nubla and exercise and health science student Jordan Rice developed a promotional poster for the upcoming artist's book that will feature the center's animated character, Zoey. During the event, they received ideas and input from expo participants for the book.
Roland says, “Working on this project fulfills several of my long-term goals, one of which is to use art as an agent for change, which Zoey’s first book certainly will do. It also provides an opportunity to work with the community on an individual level.”
Marten also commented on the benefits of the project. “Not only are we creating interesting illustrations and a fun and exciting storyline, we are also researching nutrition and fitness topics that relate to children.” The expo also allows the KSU students to apply the many skills they are developing at the university. Marten says, “Using my book arts skills, learned at KSU, to a help a non-profit organization is very rewarding.”