# The She Project

Participants receive an evocative sentence prompt starting with a designated pronoun, create an interpretive visual or written piece on paper, and display their work in a silent gallery walk.

**Time:** 35 minutes. UWT suggested session timing adapted from an open-ended multi-day community art event
**People:** 4 to 24. Individual work followed by whole-room gallery walk and debrief

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Produce creative, individual visual or written interpretations from standardized phrase prompts and observe group patterns.
**Use it when:** Use during a retreat, reflection session, or community workshop when participants need independent creative time followed by shared observation.
**Skip it when:** Skip when the group needs analytical consensus, fast decision-making, or lacks space for art making and display.

## Materials and tools

- Index cards or slips with printed She Phrases (one per person)
- Blank paper (one to two sheets per person)
- Markers, colored pencils, or pens (shared or individual sets)
- Wall-safe tape or push pins for display

## Before participants arrive

1. Print or handwrite prompt cards with distinct sentences starting with She.
2. Set out art supplies and paper at tables.
3. Designate a clear wall or table surface as the gallery display area.

## Say this to open

You will each receive a card with a short phrase starting with the word She. Your task is to interpret that phrase on blank paper using words, drawings, patterns, or collage. Take whatever meaning comes up for you. You will have fifteen minutes of quiet making time. After that, we will display the pieces together for a silent walk through.

## How to run it

### 1. Distribute prompts and explain guidelines (3 minutes)

Hand one face-down phrase card to each participant. Read the opening script. Clarify that pieces can use simple sketches, abstract shapes, handwriting, or single words. An artistic background is not required.

### 2. Create individual pieces (15 minutes)

Start the timer. Participants work individually on their paper. Provide a five-minute and one-minute warning. Participants write their prompt phrase on the front or back of their piece.

### 3. Display and silent gallery walk (7 minutes)

Participants post their pieces in the display area using tape or lay them on a designated table. Everyone walks silently around the space to view the responses without speaking or critiquing.

### 4. Structured debrief (10 minutes)

Gather the group in a circle facing the display. Facilitate the debrief questions. Invite up to five participants to share briefly, ensuring no one is pressured to explain personal art.


## Debrief questions

- What common threads or contrasting moods appeared across the different responses?
- How did working from an assigned phrase change or focus your creative process?
- What surprised you about how someone else translated a phrase into an image or text?

**Finished output:** A collective gallery of individual visual or written responses to prompt phrases.

## Remote

Send each participant a private prompt phrase via direct message before the session. Participants use whatever writing or drawing materials they have at home for fifteen minutes. Each person takes a clear photo or screenshot and uploads it to a shared digital whiteboard or slide deck. Run the silent gallery walk while everyone scrolls the shared board with video on and mics muted, then return to full video for debrief.

## Hybrid

Remote participants receive their prompts by direct chat and work on local paper or a digital canvas. In-person participants work on paper. Remote participants upload photos of their work to a digital board that is projected on a screen in the physical room. In-person participants post to the room wall. Both cohorts participate in the silent viewing simultaneously before the joint debrief.

## Access and participation choices

- Participants may write a short paragraph, poem, or single word instead of drawing.
- Participants may choose to post their piece anonymously without their name.
- Anyone may view the gallery while seated or opt to pass on speaking during the debrief without explanation.

## If the session gets stuck

**A participant gets stuck and says they cannot draw.**

Remind them that abstract lines, handwriting, single words, or geometric shapes are fully valid. The goal is personal response, not technical skill.

**Someone finishes their piece in three minutes and distracts others.**

Invite early finishers to add descriptive words to their piece or sit quietly until the time expires.


## Terms used here

- Gallery walk: A facilitation format where participants walk around a room in silence to read or view posted work.

## Participant material: Sample She Phrases

She kept the door open.
She waited until the room went quiet.
She saw what everyone else walked past.
She took a different path home.
She decided not to explain herself.
She remembered what came before.
She built a bridge out of paper.
She stood her ground in the wind.
She listened to the quietest sound.
She started over from the foundation.
She carried only what she needed.
She knew the time had arrived.

## Sources and adaptation

Observed in Teampedia as The She Project, an annual community art initiative with an associated website (sheproject.com).

The public Teampedia records describe a multi-day community project where women received email phrases, created art over an evening, and staged a public gallery show. UWT adapted this mechanic into a self-contained 35-minute workshop session with defined materials, time allocations, printable sample prompts, and a classroom-scale gallery walk. Pronoun phrasing can be adjusted to match diverse organizational themes.

[Teampedia](https://www.teampedia.net/wiki/The_She_Project)

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/the-she-project/