Welcome to Our Jingle Truck Program

What is a Jingle Truck and How did it get to Chattanooga?

In 2018, international artist, Haider Ali, transformed our mobile school truck into a work of art that reflects the traditions and culture of his native country, Karachi, Pakistan. The goal was to introduce children to a culture different from their own and have the opportunity to create artwork taught by an artist from that country. Hand painted trucks (aka Jingle Trucks), are a popular form of indigenous art in Pakistan. These vehicles feature vibrant floral designs, nature scenes and poetic calligraphy. Because these truck drivers are often away from home for sixty days or more, the artwork often reflects symbols and landscapes from their hometown. Likewise, our jingle truck includes local landscapes, the state bird, and other icons that connect our region. Local artist, Sadaf Khan, who is from the same town in Pakistan, worked with Haider on the truck and serves as our teaching artist. Ms. Khan's sweet demeanor gives the children a safe space to ask questions about her country, customs and how they create the artwork.

As we developed the program last year, we realized the importance of doing a deeper dive with the children in order to give them access to the culture behind this unique form of art. We typically spend two weeks at each school in order to provide a full enrichment program for every child. Week 1 the children meet Sadaf and learn about her country: the music, animals, currency, and the six different regions in Pakistan. This is followed by a video about truck art and a visit outside for a tour of our Jingle Truck. Children see in person how the trucks are adorned with artwork and poetry that reflect each truck driver's identity: their humor, where they are from and what they value. Week 1 ends with an open question and answer with Sadaf. This gives children an opportunity to spend time with an artist from another country while learning about the work. During week two, students get to be "drivers" of their own creativity and make their own Jingle Truck. For grades K-2 we provide coloring pages and grades 3-5th receive a truck laser cut from wood to work with. This part of the activity is mostly led by the classroom teacher. The final piece of the program is the exhibition, students' display their work on the school walls for everyone to see. We follow up with teachers after the program for a post survey. The feedback from the teachers helped us tailor this program to provide more cultural enrichment for the children while maintaining the Tennessee Academic Standards for Fine Arts. What has set this program apart from our other mobile programming is how we provide an immersion of Pakistani culture and art for youth in our community.

After Covid 19 changed the landscape of education last year, we spent last summer transitioning our program to accommodate the shifting landscape that this school year brings. Thanks to the Doris Duke Building Bridges program, we were able to work with a group called Future Architects to provide the tools to help us transform the program into a more digital space. This year, we've been able to successfully start re-transitioning back to in-person experiences. We benefitted from weekly online meetings with ArtsBuild, support from Hamilton County Department of Education, our media connections and our friends at the Public Education Foundation when we were going digital—and have still progressed forward in these ever-changing times thanks to their continued help. Bolstered by these partnerships and some amazing student interns, we are ready to launch this program for fall 2023 and are looking for schools and educators that would like to partner with us. If you would like to learn more, please contact our executive director, Kathryn Warren, at 423/314-6659 directly or via email at: katewarren@art120.org—and feel free to look around our website for more educational opportunities!