At the beginning of this year, the Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports of Sint Maarten, Melissa D. Gumbs, officially supported the launch of the first creative initiative for students in Sint Maarten, led by artist Nick Maley and the “That Yoda Guy” Museum Foundation.
Open to primary and secondary school students, this unique competition invites young people to give free rein to their imagination around an original theme blending popular culture and local identity: “What if the galaxy far, far away from Star Wars came to the Carnival?” Participants can compete in two categories: drawing/painting or writing a short story.
Conceived as a bridge between creativity and personal expression, the initiative reflects a desire to value talent outside the traditional school setting. “For over ten years, I’ve wanted to create an event to encourage children to be more creative,” explains Nick Maley, known for co-creating the character of Yoda in the Star Wars universe. The artist, nicknamed “That Yoda guy,” boasts an unconventional background. Coming from a modest family in England and facing academic difficulties, he explains that he found in artistic creation a lever to transform his life, participating in 65 film projects, producing over 450 paintings, and publishing three books. Now living in Sint Maarten, he founded the museum ‘The Yoda Guy Movie Exhibit’ with the ambition of inspiring young people to “live an extraordinary life.”
Delayed by hurricanes and then the pandemic, the project is now launching in a more favorable context. Applications have been open since April 1st and must be submitted before this Friday, the deadline set by the organizers. Up to 40 finalists will be selected. All will receive an award and will be invited to a ceremony scheduled for May 9th, during Carnival and Star Wars Week.
Beyond the competition, the aim is to stimulate the imagination of younger generations and encourage the emergence of future creative talents. This message is all the more powerful at a time when technology is playing an increasingly important role, and the initiative intends to counterbalance this by celebrating human inventiveness. _Vx
Source: Faxinfo https://faxinfo.fr/en/sint-maarten-star-wars-et-le-carnaval-au-coeur-dun-concours-scolaire-inedit/
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