In the city of Baltimore lives a vast array of talented youth who’s artistic capabilities often times get lost within the decay of the cities destructive reputation. In a place where it’s easy to become another statistic, a young visionary by the name of Shawn Burnett has decided to empower the city of Baltimore, offering its youth an alternative that will not only strengthen their gifts but also broaden their horizons.
Shawn lived in various areas of west Baltimore City, but with his mothers concerns of her son growing up in its atmosphere they relocated to the county; but never did Shawn forget about the place where he spent much of his youth. With what started off as just an idea for an annual event to showcase different artists of different genres, Shawn created Walks of ART, a non-profit organization based on implanting the relevance of self-expression and individualism in the minds of youth by way of art. Walks of ART provides a forum to express and nurture individual creative identities along with housing workshops, art exhibitions, performances, graffiti expo’s, fashion shows ,etc. Walks of ART is breaking the stigmas associated with Baltimore City by exposing the productivity of the talents of its youth and tenured artists, in hopes of overshadowing the cities tainted reputation. Although Walks of ART has only been in existence for a few months short of one year, Shawn Burnett is building his organization to be a beautiful addition to our city. With pairing up with other city leaders who are passionate about the growth and advancement of the inner city youth, Shawn foresees the possibilities of greatness that can be achieved through his organizations endeavors and the impact that it can have on the future of our city and other inner city organizations across the east coast.
Walks of ART inspires one to embrace their own individuality by not placing restraints upon the unique elements of an individual or their artistry. Lately the organization works a lot with fashion and visual arts but is not limited to other forms of artistic expressions. In August of this year, the organization held a fashion show that featured a live band, spoken word performances, and cartoon drawings. Walks of ART welcomes all types of creativity and would soon like to work with more musicians, graphic design artist, clothing designers, spoken word poets, visual artists, and all other persons who are a representation of their artistry. Another event is currently being planned similar to the fashion show they had in August, and the tentative date is scheduled for April 2012. Who knows… maybe yours truly will be there sharing his own creativity.
Sitting on the board of the directors is Shawn Burnett, the 24 year old President of Walks of ART, Taavon Bazemore, 24, a student at Morgan State who’s pursuing his Masters Degree in Social Work, Tearra High, 24, a student of University of Baltimore who acts as Co Founder and Secretary of the organization,and Peter Bruun and Stacey Martin, who are seasoned philanthropists, also sit on the board of directors offering their knowledge and expertise to a group of young Baltimore natives who are trying to make a difference.
To contribute to the growth of our community, I urge everyone to get involve with Walks of ART’s vision to build a better Baltimore. The donation of time, money and materials is necessary and would be greatly appreciated no matter the amount. It’s our responsibility as well as residents of Baltimore to do as much as we can to contribute to the revival of this place that we call our home. To get involved or to find out more about Walks of ART visit their website at www.walksofart.org, or you can find them on facebook @ Walks of ART.
