Partner: Fundación Amigos Caleidoscopio | Year: 2025
In September 2025, I imparted a 2-hour workshop in Fundación Amigos Caleidoscopio, a Mexico City-based organization dedicated to the education of people with special needs, such as Down syndrome or autism.
The workshop was about collaboration, sketching, improvisation and narrative.
The main activity was a Narrative Accordion: a visual spin on an exquisite cadaver. On a large sheet of paper, a participant drew freely for the duration of a song, then folded the paper and gave it to the next participant. At the end of the workshop, I unfolded the accordion and read the story, linking each particpant’s panel to weave the story.
While the participant drew their part on the accordion, the rest of the group drew either freely, or based off a one-word prompt that I read out loud (e.g. “raspberry” or “hot cocoa”). These prompts led to entire scenes. For example, one participant, based off the words “raspberry” and “blanket”, drew a raspberry superhero whose cape was a blanket and was saving a city.
The next activity was a 2-person collaborative drawing: a paper was folded in four panels and spread across the table between a pair of two participants. Each participant had two panels to draw on. These could either be related between them, or deal with entirely separate topics. One example where these drawings became a conversation was where one participant was drawing street scenes (cars, people crossing the street, etc.), and his partner answered in other street scenes from his perspective. Thus, these four panels became a sort of mini-zine that revolved around a main theme.
Finally, on individual sheets, each participant printed their hand and drew around that shape. It was interesting to note that not all hands were spread out in the same shape - some participants wanted to print their hand as a fist, and, as a participant said, in a “croissant shape”.
FAC | Visual Narrative Workshop
In September 2025, I imparted a 2-hour workshop in Fundación Amigos Caleidoscopio, a Mexico City-based organization dedicated to the education of people with special needs, such as Down syndrome or autism.
The workshop was about collaboration, sketching, improvisation and narrative.
The main activity was a Narrative Accordion: a visual spin on an exquisite cadaver. On a large sheet of paper, a participant drew freely for the duration of a song, then folded the paper and gave it to the next participant. At the end of the workshop, I unfolded the accordion and read the story, linking each particpant’s panel to weave the story.
While the participant drew their part on the accordion, the rest of the group drew either freely, or based off a one-word prompt that I read out loud (e.g. “raspberry” or “hot cocoa”). These prompts led to entire scenes. For example, one participant, based off the words “raspberry” and “blanket”, drew a raspberry superhero whose cape was a blanket and was saving a city.
The next activity was a 2-person collaborative drawing: a paper was folded in four panels and spread across the table between a pair of two participants. Each participant had two panels to draw on. These could either be related between them, or deal with entirely separate topics. One example where these drawings became a conversation was where one participant was drawing street scenes (cars, people crossing the street, etc.), and his partner answered in other street scenes from his perspective. Thus, these four panels became a sort of mini-zine that revolved around a main theme.
Finally, on individual sheets, each participant printed their hand and drew around that shape. It was interesting to note that not all hands were spread out in the same shape - some participants wanted to print their hand as a fist, and, as a participant said, in a “croissant shape”.
Collaborative drawing - I drew a ceramic vase and asked the participant to add flowers.
Hand prints.
Participants drawing.
Croissant, snail based off hand prints.