Looking back on Summer 2023
This summer marked the fifth year of the Diversity in the Arts Internship Program, and it was filled with the creativity and growth that DITA is all about. From organizing kid's camps to teaching the art of zine-making to learning graphic design, our interns had a whirlwind summer at 8 host sites throughout the metro area. You can read about their experiences below, and join us in wishing them well in all their future endeavors! We're thrilled to have these creative young leaders sharing their skills with communities near and far.
The 2023 cohort takes a moment to be silly during the DITA workshop hosted by Rainbow Dome.
Andrew Hager (he/him): Center for Visual Arts - MSU Denver
"I'm a Studio Art major at NYU, and this summer I've been a gallery and teaching assistant at CVA. I help teach the teen summer program Art + Action Lab, where I have led lessons on zine making, Adobe Premiere Pro, and art critique.
Come by on Friday, August 18th for the opening of our latest exhibit, Colorado Women to Watch!"
Andrew is pictured here in the CVA gallery space.
Faith Lindsay (she/her): Creative Strategies for Change
Faith spent her summer learning how to bridge art and activism through community education at Creative Strategies for Change.
She's pictured here (far left, red shirt) at her farewell lunch with the CSC team, including DITA 2022 alum Keandra Hunt (far right, yellow dress).
Clove Love (they/them): Curious Theatre Company
Clove dove headfirst into the world of contemporary theatre throughout the summer at Curious Theatre Company, from dramaturgical research to box office support and beyond.
Clove is pictured here at the DITA workshop hosted in the Rainbow Dome office.
Bjorn Magnus (he/him, they/them): Rainbow Dome
"I’m a soon-to-be graduate from Front Range Community College. This summer I’ve been interning at Rainbow Dome. We’ve provided skating, art, and other activities for Adams County’s 2nd Pride festival. This summer, I designed and created merchandise and worked with the team to fabricate art for the upcoming Meow Wolf music festival, Vortex on August 25-27th. This internship has been incredibly fun and artistically fulfilling, I’ve been given the opportunity to work alongside other amazing artists from the queer community and have learned so much from working with them.
You can catch Rainbow Dome at Douglas Country Pride on August 26th!"
Pictured here is a sticker Bjorn designed for Rainbow Dome.
Andy Rodriguez (he/him): Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities
Andy got to explore his love of drawing in new ways during his summer as a marketing and communications intern at the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities. You can read more about his experience in the blog post he wrote for the Arvada Center's website!
Pictured here, Andy adds to a list of group norms during the DITA workshop hosted at Lighthouse Writer's Workshop.
La'llea Ryan (she/her): City of Lakewood
La'llea had a fun-filled summer working with campers at the Lakewood Cultural Center.
She's pictured here giving a presentation about her internship to her fellow cohort members.
Harper Ryckman (she/her): Museo de las Americas
"I'm a current undergraduate student at Boston University studying the History of Art and Architecture as well as Spanish. This summer I interned at Museo de las Americas with the Education and Programs departments. As an intern at Museo I have gotten to learn about and engage with the Latinx community of Denver. This has been very impactful to me as I come from generations of Chicano Coloradans and preserving and learning about my culture is very important to me. I was also the coordinator for our Summer Arts and Culture Camp and worked with our teen program, the Lxs Jovenes Leadership Lab. In addition, I have been able to teach art and culture workshops, reshape some existing programming, and develop some new workshops.
Upcoming events you can check out at Museo include Lucha Libre Extravaganza on August 18th, the opening of Costa Rica: Long Live Peace and Labor on September 14th, and DÃa de los Muertos programming between October 28 through November 3."
Pictured here are the campers Harper worked with at Museo.
Katelyn Thatch (all pronouns): Denver Botanic Gardens
Katelyn found their passion for leadership this summer while managing the teen internship program at Denver Botanic Gardens.
Katelyn is pictured here with their supervisors from the Gardens.