STEWP!
STEWP! is about creating a gathering space where none existed before. Iconic in cities like New York, Chicago, and Philly—Stoop fronts are more than a means to enter and exit a home. They’re meeting places for the neighborhood, especially within communities of color. These are places where neighbors talk and greet one another, elders share stories, kids play, hair gets braided, aunties sit and protect the neighborhood, small businesses thrive, food is shared and secrets are told. Stoops are where community naturally forms.
At this moment in time, as people grow more isolated and separated, STEWP! becomes a necessary public engagement intervention—an invitation to come together, put your phone down (after you take a picture and read this). sit side by side- face to face, talk, listen, share...and simply coexist.
About the Artist:
We are a RISD Industrial Design (reassembling ID) class called Artwerks! In this social design course, we reject the sterile in favor of the deeply personal, exploring how our identities and lived experiences shape the way we create. We break down barriers between art and design, 2D and 3D, institution and student body, working across disciplines to foster a design practice that is engaged, intersectional, and community-driven. This project was a way for our class to learn about what community means and how there are different layers of community. It's easy to design for yourself- if's harder to design for others- but that's what we do!! We found ways to engage and work with each other, engage in a community practice within the proximity of our campus, create a social interaction and try to give something back to Fox Point/College Hill during our time here.
More about the artists and the project can be found at: https://sites.google.com/risd.edu/stewps/home