SAUGUS — The Boys & Girls Club’s teen center in the Square One Mall is gearing up for its first-ever Gallery One event on May 3.
The grand opening will start at 4 p.m. and go until 6 p.m. The Club hopes to see many stop by to support the teens who have dedicated their time to filling the space with their artwork.
The Boys & Girls Club’s regional art director, David Cárdenas, has taken the lead when it comes to the creation of the project.
“As we expanded into Saugus, I kind of had this idea that a lot of teen centers, at least that I’ve been a part of as a kid or professionally, have just been a little… There’s no feeling of teens or the youths that are a part of that community that are in the center,” Cárdenas said.
He continued that he wanted the art from the gallery to be the center’s decor.
“You walk in, and it’s an immersive experience of kids owning their space, youths owning the space that they are in. So, these teens are really taking ownership of the look of the space,” he said.
The gallery will be rotational, with the idea being that the artwork rotates every quarter.
“Kids who weren’t in it in the past or who have created something crazy and new get to display their art in the gallery,” Cárdenas said.
The plan is for The Club to also open the gallery space to local artists in the community so that teens and kids can see their work and the work of others in the art world.
“Not only are the teens seeing each other’s works and their works being presented but are also seeing their community and people in their community highlighted as well, so if they do decide or want to take art or any creative job opportunity that it’s actually fulfilling and sustainable for them,” he said.
Cárdenas continued that the inclusion of local artists helps show that art can be more than just a hobby if the teens wish to pursue it in the future.
The Wakefield and Stoneham teen centers will also participate in the event and said the response has been great.
“I always kind of like to shoot not low but be realistic,” he said. He explained that Saugus is the newest location, and the numbers are much lower than in Wakefield or Stoneham.
“Our numbers in Wakefield are like 103 kids on our best days and then 98 on our off days, so we have not been competing at that level yet in Saugus since we just opened. So, I’ve opened it up to all the teen centers that we are attached to,” he said.
The original plan going into it was to get at least five to eight kids to produce one thing. However, this quickly changed.
“Each site is cranking out a minimum of 10, and I think Wakefield has 15 kids who have participated, and each kid is at least doing one if not two or three pieces, so now I’m looking at the walls and thinking we might need more wall space,” Cárdenas said.
Kids are submitting the work through a submission sheet where they can fill out the type of art it is going to be, what it’s called, a description of what it is, and the materials they used.
“We paired up with the Saugus Cultural Council, and they gave us a grant to open it up,” he said. “When we got it, I want to say within the first two weeks, I was like, ‘OK, let’s send this out and see how it goes.’ The closer and closer we get (to the opening), kids are like, ‘Wait, we need to extend the deadline!” and ‘My fifth project isn’t done yet!'”
Cárdenas has been impressed with the turnout and how the kids get so involved. He’s even received calls from parents asking what the dress attire is for the event.
“I’m like, ‘Dress up if you want and come on through. We’re going to have a nice little cheeseboard, and it’ll be great.’ I’m really, really excited that this is taking off,” he said.
