Portraits by Van Gogh? Collages by Basquiat? Nope, it's all the work of P.S.8 first graders!
Story by Anna Leier
The auditorium was overflowing with P.S.8's first graders and parents beaming with pride on Friday morning; the latter secretly wondering if they were raising little Van Goghs.
Colorful paintings and collages decorated the walls, and about 100 mini sculptures were proudly presented on a center table. After a short introduction by Belinda Blum, Studio in a School's visiting artist, the vernissage was in full swing. The kids excitedly guided their parents around their work - collages of urban, arctic, ocean, and rainforest habitats together with outstanding portraits of the staff.
The artworks were the results of a 14-week-long Studio in a School residency, an enrichment program that allows artists to cooperate with class teachers on creating a customized project, combining art with the curriculum.
Proud 1st-grade mother and teacher Ms. Saffady explains the value of Studio in a School: "The children connect much better to the social and science studies when they do hands-on art." Adds her colleague Mr. Levy: "Reading and talking about a topic helps, but to create your own topic-related artifact using different materials like collage and clay makes a much better learning experience."
Take, for example, the science unit's "Animal Habitats." Every class had studied the topic with their teacher when Belinda came into the classroom for five consecutive weeks to work with the children on drafting and executing a collective collage. They learned about shapes, cutting, and even related art vocabulary like "overlap" or "contrast."
The social studies unit, meanwhile, focused on "Community." This is where the teachers portraits came into play (hundreds of teachers' faces smiled from the auditorium walls on Friday). The kids had been asked to choose a photograph of one P.S.8 teacher and portray it by observation, using pencil or sharpies and watercolors. Nakiya Dunlep, mother of Clarence, looked thrilled while admiring his picture of Ms. Louise, the lunch aid -- who is Clarence's grandmother. "Wow, this is amazing, I think he might have inherited my genes, I love drawing, too," she said cheerfully.
Nearby, newlywed Sean Merriam, father of Alex and husband to Mrs. Melissa Merriam, cracked up about the pictures of his wife, whom the kids call by her maiden name, Ms. I. "I think she is beautiful, and I have seen her look all these ways." He was referring to the interesting, at times lovably-distorted ways in which the children portrayed the kindergarten teacher.
Kindergarten classes also got into the action
In the 3D unit, the students learned about spheres and cylinders, working with clay and how to "score" it. ( "You make little punches on both sides, and then you stick them together to make it stable," explained 1st grader Liam Dunne helpfully.) The children created figures depicting professions - everything from babysitters to chefs to detectives, with plenty of cute detail and brilliant coloring. Kathleen Merlis, mother of Zeke, admired the firefighter statue her son had created. She was stunned by the professionalism of the exhibition: "The children's artwork is treated with a lot of respect, and my son, who is usually not a great arts-and-crafts lover, really tried hard and got a lot of confidence out of this."
In her opening speech Ms Blum addressed the importance to the students of an official presentation of their hard work. Belinda's mission is to do thought-provoking and experimental work, helping the children understand the artist's view. But the learning is reciprocal. She finds it most rewarding to work with these scholars' genuine and innocent approaches to art. Belinda Blum expressed her awe for the children's work by quoting Pablo Picasso; "Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up."
Belinda Blum is a Washington, D.C. born painter, who has worked in New York for 14 years. In her studio in Gowanus she paints in oil, mainly neo-expressionistic landscapes and figures. She joined Studio in a School in 1999, where she teaches three days a week. Belinda Blum holds a B.A. in History from the University of Wisconsin and a M.F.A. in Visual Arts from the Mason Gross School of the Arts from Rutgers in New Brunswick. She has a 13-month-old daughter. If you want to get to know Belinda better, please email her to be added to her mailing list.
You can learn more about Studio in a School at www.studioinaschool.org.
While budgets for the 2008/9 school year are not yet developed, it's likely that PTA funding will increasingly play a role in assisting enrichment programs as Magnet Grant funds are absorbed. So, please continue to support P.S. 8 PTA fundraising efforts; you can learn more about how to do this by clicking here.
To see the Kindergarten photo gallery Click Here
To see the First Grade photo gallery Click Here
Posted on: February 10, 2008
