Site-Based Art Learning

SITE-BASED ART LEARNING

SUMMER '26 PALI HIGH COHORT

7 students · 4 sessions · 96% attendance · 4.75 / 5 average rating

Project Chimney: Site-Based Art Learning invites high school students to engage with local preservation work through the Palisades Fire Memorial. Offered as a community-benefit educational program, the opportunity is available to a small cohort of students from Palisades Charter High School at no cost to families. Site-Based Art Learning Summer '26 Cohort is led by Evan Curtis Charles Hall and includes 7 students who meet Wednesdays in June/July.

Session 1: Intro/Bricks w. Barbara Rossi

Session 2: Storytelling & Media w. Gabriel Rodriguez-Fuller

Session 3: Brick Making w. Corbin Schuppert, CA State Parks

Session 4: Making a Memorial w. Sofia Dixon

Developed by House Museum, this specialized program brings students to the Chimney Yard, where six historic chimneys salvaged from homes lost in the 2025 Palisades Fire, are being stored for the forthcoming memorial. Through hands-on material engagement, collaborative group work, and reflective discourse, students will learn firsthand how art, architecture, and history intersect.

Rooted in the principles of place-based and experiential education, the program offers the next generation a rare opportunity to learn from the land, each other, and structures that shaped their neighborhood. Students explore the architectural legacy of Pacific Palisades—from the modernist designs of Richard Neutra, Ray Kappe, and Eric Lloyd Wright, to the community stories embedded in every surviving brick—and contribute their own voices to the in-process memorial through oral histories, documentation, and written reflection.

For a generation of students who lived through the fire, this is more than an arts education program. It is a urgent and meaningful way to process loss, build collective understanding, and advocate for the recovery of Pacific Palisades.

Sponsored by Palisades Recovery Coalition - Art For Healing

In-kind donations from Blick Art Materials, Anawalt Lumber, and Home Depot.

Student testimonials

"The most significant thing I learned was understanding the importance of memorials — that no matter how good technology is, things will still be forgotten unless they have a memorial." — Noah, sophomore

"Being immersed in the environment we are studying gave me the opportunity to personally connect with the location. I was able to learn while exploring the soil, material, interaction, and buildings that we were discussing." — Quinn, junior

"A brick, because after the fire, a brick meant there would still be something left to come back to... Rebuilding doesn't happen all at once. It begins with one brick, one wall, one family returning, and one neighbor recognizing another."

— Nicolette, junior

What's Next?

Students asked for more field sessions, more hands-on construction, and more collaborative projects. We plan to expand the program to more local students adding on-site conservation, memorial construction, and archival practice.

Next Site-Based Art Learning cohort: Summer 2027

Schools, teachers and institutions interested in partnering: email info [at] house [dot] museum