From “Once upon a time,” to, “A long time ago,” there are thousands of ways to begin a story. All come together in AIGA’s (Professional Association for Design) Toledo's latest project, Sit & Tell.
The community art and storytelling project will kick off with an initial celebration, held in conjunction with World Storytelling Day, on Sunday, March 20. Both events share the theme of Strong Women.
“We all have stories,” said Jenn Stucker, Project Creator and Co-president of AIGA Toledo. “We are looking for clear, succinct and poignant stories about the strong women in peoples lives… “We have so many people already participating. From a person who recalls losing their mother at the age of three, to the woman who talks about swapping tortillas for Tab soda— we want anyone from nine to 90 to tell us their tale.”
Collective, Collaborative, and Communal
After the stories are told on March 20, visual artists in the area will illustrate their story, which will then be printed on 100 chairs donated by MTS Seating, a Temperance, MI based company.
“MTS was a big part of the genesis of the project,” says Stucker, who is also an Assistant Professor of Graphic Design at BGSU. “When partnering with MTS I got to thinking about the phrase ‘pull up a chair.’ MTS had already sponsored a local art campaign called The Art of Seating. It made sense to continue in that [direction].”
Starting June 18, the chairs will go on display, ten at a time, at the places where the stories were first told. The display will continue to rotate through August.
Have a story to tell? Register for a reading time at sitandtell.com
Recording Schedule
9am – 11:30am: Olde North End
Ohio Theatre (3114 LaGrange St.)
9am – 12:30pm: Old West End & Cherry St.
Collingwood Arts Center (2413 Collingwood Blvd.)
Noon – 2:30pm: East Toledo
National Museum of the Great Lakes (1701 Front St.)
1pm – 3:30pm: UpTown
Toledo Lucas County Public Library (325 N. Michigan St.)
3pm – 5:30pm: Old South End
Sofia Quintero Art & Cultural Center (1225 Broadway St.)
4pm – 6:30pm: Dorr St.
Frederick Douglass Community Association (1001 Indiana Ave.)
6pm – 8:30pm: Warehouse District
Seed Coworking (25 South Saint Clair St.)
