Young Artists at Work
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

Young artists rehearse for their culminating performance of Live! In Our Real World.

Photo: Cynthia Taylor

For most teens, paying jobs provide not only much-needed income, but also a positive use of their time and reinforcement of their value. In this case, the job is to create art within a high-caliber artistic environment," says Dr. Jonathan Yorba, director, education and community programs at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. “Practicing art requires self-discipline, problem solving and imagination—tools for achieving artistic literacy, creation of art, and job and life skills.”

These are the assumptions behind the Young Artists at Work (YAAW) program that is managed by Cynthia Taylor, associate curator, school and youth programs, and carried out in collaboration with the San Francisco Unified School District's Regional Occupation Program/Career and Technical Education Office. Now in its ninth year, 15 artistically inclined, inner-city students participate in part-time, year-round paid residencies at the center—an acclaimed Bay Area multi-disciplinary arts venue located at the heart of San Francisco's new cultural and commercial district. Here they study and create for eight hours a week during the school year and 20 hours a week in the summer under the guidance of professional artists, carefully selected for their artistic achievements and direct experience working with teens.

In 2002-03, participants are working with a cartoon artist, a filmmaker, and a West African dance expert. Through this experience, these young people hone their communication and technical production skills as well as abilities to analyze artistic and cultural contexts. Each session culminates in a public presentation at the center that provides outside validation of the participants' work. In addition, YAAW students are linked through exchanges and peer performances with other cultural institutions in the community, such as the African American Cultural Center, Zeum, The Jewish Museum of San Francisco, and The Cartoon Art Museum.

The program also is designed to develop such practical life skills as punctuality, respect, and self-discipline. Each participant receives an Employee Handbook and signs a memorandum of understanding agreeing to focus on solutions rather than problems, support others in the group, and have fun. Small-group work further encourages development of positive interpersonal skills.

Some YAAW graduates have obtained jobs in theaters or in arts centers, while others have gone on to enroll in university arts programs. But even those who do not continue in the arts have acquired promising new perspectives and life skills.