Literacy Dig: An Artsy Atmosphere

On Saturday, September 4th, my group members and I went to a local arts fair. We were all very excited to see how literacy plays a part in a community arts event. When we split up the responsibilities, my role was to gather and record evidence of literacy. For 30 minutes, I went around the booths within a specific street corner and gathered pamphlets, flyers, business cards, magazines, and other forms of physical print. It was also my role to investigate how reading and writing functioned within the arts envrionment. I had to ask myself many questions while observing the environment: Were words really necessary in order to navigate around the fair? Did the community members use literacy in order to purchase food, drinks, and artistic items for sale? How could an illiterate person function within the arts fair and what accomodations were available, allowing them to blend in within a "normal," high-functioning society?

As I went around to the different booths, I noticed that "words" were not very visible. Most of the signs that did contain words were displayed in very small font. In order for a person to understand what the booth was advertising, they could not tell from a distance, but would have to walk up in front of the sellers and read the tiny signs. However, that is assuming the people actually used the words on the signs to identify what the booths were selling. Most people, from what I observed, did not read the signs at all. While navigating around the fair, a person would use their sense of smell in order to find where the food booths were located. Or if a person wanted to buy a large ceramic clock, then they would see it visually from a distance. It was not necessary for them to go up to each individual booth and read the tiny sign in order to find out the booths' primary purpose. Also, let's say that a person did not see or smell what they were looking for, then maybe they could use listening skills in order to navigate around the fair. It was not necessary to read the tiny "Thai Food" sign when people were verbally saying things like "the food is over by the music." Even if that person could not read or write, they could still find "Thai Food." Now, I did observe how sometimes literacy would make a difference but only if a person drove to the fair. There were signs reading "No Parking" posted on the street corners. I can see how a person could park there by mistake if they could not read the sign. However, just from observing the overall context of the fair---how everyone was walking around within such a tight space and cars were virtually no where to be seen---I highly doubt that reading the "No Parking" sign was vital to attending the fair. There were so many identifying factors that made the need for literacy obsolete. If a person wanted to find the booth that was advertising music, then all they would have to do is look for the big banner with pictures of musical instruments, music notes, or musicians. The booth that sold lemonade did have a sign that said "Lemonade, $.50" but a person would only have to see the actual lemons stitting on the booth counter to know that booth's general purpose. Also, why have the sign that says "Lemonade $.50" at all, when there is a person working there who VERBALLY tells you their purpose in being at the fair. For example, I saw the lemons at the booth and walked right up to the woman sitting there and before I could utter a single word, I was asked the question, "Would you like to buy some lemonade? It's only $.50 and the proceeds go to the youth philharmonic." Well, right then and there, it's obvious how little literacy played a role in that situation. I observed how most people paid with cash and coins, but I can see how literacy would play a role if a person tried writing a check to pay for an item. In the case of lemonade, no one used check or credit to pay for their drink; however, I observed some people using their credit card to pay for paintings. So, I have to ask myself...Could an illiterate person pay for a piece of artwork with a credit card? If they knew how to sign their name, then yes. But, would an illiterate person even have a credit card in the first place? Well, writing was needed in some instances at the arts fair. I went up to a jazz booth and asked how could I sign up for their mailing list if I did not know how to read and write. The men at the booth had no idea what I was talking about. I posed a scenario for them. I said, "What if a member of the community really wanted to stay informed on the local jazz events but did not know how to read or write; thus, they could not sign up to be on your mailing list." The men then countered back with, "Well, if they had an address in the first place, they would need to know how to read and write. Plus, why would an illiterate person request printed information in the first place?" I thought that these mens' viewes were very interesting. They posed a lot of great questions. How common is it to find an illiterate person in our community who would actually attend an arts fair and request printed information in the mail? One of the men I spoke with told me that they have never had a single person in all of their years of working at the fair approach them and admit that they were illiterate. I guess at an arts fair literacy is pretty much a given. You wouldn't assume that an illiterate person would approach your booth and purchase something or sign up for a mailing list. There was one instance in which I thought literacy would play an important role, but the volunteer at the fair proved me wrong. At the information booth, there was a written survey on a piece of paper. When I walked up to the booth, the volunteer asked if I would like to fill out a survey about my experience at the fair. I then asked her what accomodations could she make for me if I could not read or write. She seemed stunned at first, but then said, "Well, I could read out the questions for you and then you verbally tell me what you think. Then I will write down your answers and basically fill out the survey myself for you." She proved me wrong. I guess even when it comes to confidential surveys, a person does not need to be able to read or write in order to express their opinions.

Overall, the literacy materials were arranged so that they were not very visible. Yes, the pamphlets, business cards, and menus were physically on the booth, but they weren't the focal point of the booth. Any person who has a history in advertising and marketing would know that small printed materials do not attract people to purchase items from you. You need music, pictures, performances, or activities in order to get people interested. Well, that is what an arts fair is all about. You can go to the arts fair, have a fantastic time, and still not read a single piece of paper. What about people from other countries for whom English is not their native language. Those printed materials, all written in English, would be useless. The only time literacy actually mattered was when a person wanted to take an artist's business card, biography, or an order form along with them. These "big spender" people would of course be able to read and write, especially if they were forking over thousands of dollars for ceramic statues of farm animals. Personally, I think it would be more difficult for visually impaired, hearing impaired, or physically impaired people to navigate their way around the arts fair in comparison to illiterate people. Even young children who typically cannot read or write, were still able to function well and have lots of fun at the arts fair. If ever they had a question about a booth's purpose, all they would have to do is ask their parents, "Mommy, what's that?" or "Mama, can I go see what the other station is?" At an arts fair, a 3 year old child would not care that the watercolor artist was selling artwork at fairs in five other states. The 3 year old child would only care if they had the chance to create their own watercolor painting by physically DOING IT---not reading about it! It's unfortunate that literacy does not play a significant role at a community arts fair. I'm sure the percentage of local community members who attended the fair that weekend was huge. Imagine if instead of an arts fair, they were having a literacy education event and had the same high percentage of participation. Now, that would be incredible!