What about the Youth?

I've talked about attracting diversity to the house; knocking down the stereotype of a "posh" and "middle class venue" that has been put on the House. However, when you think of diversity, what do you qualify under that word? Is it gender? Nationality? Race? Religion? How about heritage? Well, while diversity does have "diverse" meanings (yes, pun intended), I wanted to talk about the diversity of age. Recently, I attended the Design Museum in London. Expecting architecture and design, I was surprised to find a whole section dedicated to developing the idea of school kids (Design Museum, 2010). This was an interesting concept because while Lauderdale House looks primarily at art and culture, they still strongly encourage individual talent through the showing of diverse works and artists, including supporting the Pride in London in July (Lauderdale House, 2010). So, with the initiation and continuation of Myplace, a center for youth as an outlet for their ideas (DCSF, 2008), maybe Lauderdale House can add to its range of "diversity". Why not target school kids? They do so already with their outreach programs, but what about exhibiting their work, their talent, and their ideas? What about creating a space for them to get recognition and encouragement for their artistic expression while knocking down the stereotype placed on the House? It makes sense that the younger generation will be the ones aging and possibly becoming more of the target market for Lauderdale House in the future. By encouraging them to have interaction with the House and more so receive recognition by their community, the stereotype may then start to change. Furthermore, some publicity of Lauderdale House's efforts for the youth wouldn't hurt! Maybe we'll soon see an article on the House and an exhibition from a teenager from Highgate in the Design Museum. It is just one of the many activities the House can consider as an extension of their services rather than a far reach.

DCSF. 2008. Young People Have a 'Myplace' to Call Their Own. [Online] Available at: http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2008_0065 [Accessed 23 March 2010].

Design Museum. 2010. Schools+Colleges. [Online] Available at: http://designmuseum.org/schools-and-colleges [Accessed 24 March 2010].

Lauderdale House. 2010. What's On. [Online] Available at: http://lauderdalehouse.co.uk/2968_apr-may-jun10.pdf [Accessed 23 March 2010].