Multimedia Storytelling Installation brings artists and community together

Multimedia storytelling installation inspired by a local barbershop is created in TDPS course led by faculty member Jared Mezzocchi.

Faculty member, Jared Mezzocchi, head of the multimedia design area, and recent winner of Elliot Norton Award (presented by the Boston Theater Critics' Association) for Outstanding Design, Midsize Theater, and IRNE Award (Independent Reviewers of New England) for Best Projection Design, guided his students in creatinng a multimedia storytelling installation: HAIR and the Transformative Power of ART . The project integrated art and creative expression into the health advocacy work happening at a local barber shop in Hyattsville, Maryland. It was a successful collaboration between TDPS students and faculty, UMD School of Public Health, the Office of Inclusion and Diversity, and The Clarice.

This summer, President Loh visited the The SHOP in Hyattsville which was the inspiration for the  storytelling installation. Katie Sullivan, 2nd year MFA in Scenic Design was the TDPS representative/ co-designer of the Installation. This project lifted up the work of the owners of the barbershop in a way that shows it fits in museums and galleries and stages. Projects such as this are part of the work of making change in the local community.