A participative project for Esch 2022, European Capital of Culture
My Echo, My Shadow and Me (abbreviated in 3xMe) is an art and social programme of workshops, public discussions and an exhibition around the topic of how digital culture influences the identity of younger generations and how we can use technological tools (e.g. cameras, smartphones and social media) as a method of investigation and understanding of the self and one’s own community.
The project has at its core SPEX autobiographical workshops lead by artist and facilitator Cristina Nuñez and involving groups of local young people (15-26) that have realised participative artworks with an autobiographical focus and a social ethos. The participation of young people from immigrant families and disadvantaged groups has been particularly encouraged.
Spanning over a period of 8 months (4 months in 2021 and 4 months in 2022), the workshops have employed Nuñez’s method The Self-Portrait Experience (SPEX), in which participants explore their emotions, needs and values through guided questions posed by the artists with a peer-to-peer approach. Then, through the use of various media – such as photography, video, and journaling – they have built an autobiographical and community archive. The aim was to guide the participants in a journey towards self-expression, self-empowerment, and a stronger sense of community belonging based on ‘sharing’ and self-disclosure.
The peer-to-peer approach is accentuated by the fact that first round of workshops (2021) also aimed to train local young people to be SPEX facilitators and to work as assistants in the second round of workshops (2022). A group of students of the Lycée Belval in Luxembourg participated to the project. The project also had the additional aim to engage in mutual learning across the organisations involved in the project on how experiential learning typical of artistic workshops can be introduced in school curriculums and adapted to the needs of specific groups of youth.
A selection of the participative material resulting from the workshops are presented in a physical exhibition at the Maison du Savoir, University of Luxembourg in Esch, an online platform, and a publication, visible below:
Here are some images of the opening reception at the Grande Salle, Maison des Arts et des Étudiants, Belval:
Workshops 2021
Autobiographical workshops led by artist and facilitator Cristina Nuñez between February and June 2021, and involving groups of local young people that produced participative artworks with an autobiographical focus and a social ethos.
The workshops involved two groups of young adults (18-26 years old). The workshops employed Nuñez’s method The Self-Portrait Experience (SPEX), in which participants explored their emotions, needs and values through guided questions posed by the artists with a peer-to-peer approach.
The workshops also had the aim to train a small group of participants to be facilitators of the SPEX method and to work as assistant in the second round of workshops in 2021.
Training young people in the method will also give them professional opportunities and allow them to organize their workshops after the end of the project.
Workshops 2022
Autobiographical workshops, between February and June 2022, led by artist Cristina Nuñez with the assistance of 5 local facilators formed during the 2021 workshops.
The workshops involved two groups of adolescents and young adults (15 – 26 years old):
Group 1: young people with addictions, in collaboration with Impuls Association and young migrant workers, in collaboration with Ryse and Passarell Associations
Group 3: adolescents at the Lycée Belval in Esch sur Alzette.
Through the use of various media – such as photography, video, and journaling – they built an autobiographical and community archive. The aim was to guide the participants in a journey towards self-expression, self-empowerment, and a stronger sense of community belonging based on ‘sharing’ and self-disclosure.
My Echo, my Shadow and Me
Project leader: Art As Experience, asbl, Luxembourg
Partner 1: The Self-Portrait Experience, non-profit association, Switzerland
Partner 2: Café Crème, asbl, Luxembourg
Partner 3: The University of Luxembourg, Faculty of Education
Partner 4: Looking Forward, community interest company, London, UK
Local associations involved: Ryse, Impuls, Passerell, Asti
Project director: Paul di Felice
Curators: Paul di Felice, Carolina Lio
Leading artist: Cristina Nuñez
Location: Maison des Arts et des Étudiants and Maison du Savoir
Campus de Belval – Université du Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette
With the support of:
