Playground of Color
"It’s an awesome way to make a child feel important…successful,"
remarked Robin Hire. She was describing A Playground of Color,
the elementary school art exhibit at the Johnson-Humrickhouse
Museum. As Robin walked around the exhibition with her family
during the artists’ reception on February 6th, she exuded enthusiasm.
Of course, Robin is not an impartial observer. Not only does
she teach art at Plainfield and Fresno, but also two of her
daughters, students at West Lafayette, had works on display.
Daughter Lauren, a first grader, described
her drawing. The assignment was to draw a tree with birdfeeders
hanging from it, and grass in the foreground. Using pencil,
crayon and paint, she created a lively fall scene, the birdfeeders
swaying in the wind and a bold yellow sun brightening up every
blade of grass. Lauren likes to draw because it makes her feel
happy. Her older sister, second grader Madeline, expressed joy
and confidence as she described her picture created with crayon
and attached cutout shapes made from construction paper. She
composed a coral reef with starfish, clown fish, sea horse and
a vine of seaweed that had "grown" up and beyond the picture
itself. Since she was three years old, Madeline has been creating
artwork. Her early studies were of Jesus. She likes art because
it keeps her from getting bored and makes her feel good.
Many children responded like Madeline when
asked why they liked doing art. Morgan Unger, a West Lafayette
second grader who also loves to dance, said she enjoys doing
art because it makes her feel excited. Keene third grader, Alex
Wheeler who feels he draws well, said it made him feel great.
Jantzen Allen keeps a drawing journal and especially likes drawing
robots. This was not his first exhibited work. He had a piece
exhibited in the Coshocton County Fair last year. Jantzen, a
fourth grader at West Lafayette, also directs his love for drawing
in practical ways, recently creating a birthday card for his
grandmother.
Jarett Hocter, a third grader from Conesville,
likes to do artistic things because "it gets out the things
in his head that he wants to do." Jarett’s art teacher, Jan
Zurowski, assigned the students to paint a picture of flowers
in a vase, using sponges instead of brushes. The vase had to
be as tall as one-half the paper size. Jarett’s still life has
the feeling of an Impressionist painting—lots of color and sensuality.
He is learning technique, but notice where his mind is. The
job of the artist is to express thoughts, images and feelings
that bump around in his/her head but are not as easily or fully
expressed by words.
Several children wanted to comment on the exhibit
itself. They found it "crazy," "colorful" and "fun." Dave and
Kathy Arnold of West Lafayette were enjoying the reception with
their three children, Jonathan (who had a very cute purple pig
on display), Nathan and Hannah. The brothers talked about their
favorite pieces—the dragon and copper bas reliefs. Pre-schooler
Hannah liked the masks and flowers. Kathy and Dave try to attend
this exhibit each year. Not only is it entertaining, but the
color and the diversity of artwork is fascinating.
Elementary students throughout the county look
forward to this exhibit. Robin Hire stated that every year students
ask about it… "Will my picture be in it, Mrs. Hire?" She said
it is a good incentive and a great way to open their eyes to
other people’s artwork. Also, she loves to see her students
at the reception since not only are they looking at the elementary
art exhibit, but also walking around the whole museum with their
families, seeing art from around the world.
Marian Wright Edelman founder and president
of Children’s Defense Fund, states, "We must meet the needs
of the whole child …Children do not come in pieces. They live
in families and communities." Besides the basic needs of nutrition,
family and healthcare, children have needs to explore, imagine,
create, play and learn. Participating in art is terrific way
to meet those needs. Exhibiting their artwork in a museum environment
is a wonderful way to make it a family and community experience.
As Edelman proposes, we are responsible to meet the needs of
the whole child. They are "the seeds and the molders of history
and the transmitters of our values…." For our own community’s
and our culture’s sake, let’s nurture our young people with
art. These experiences are priceless.
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