FAIR HAVEN – The work of more than 900 students, ranging from pre-K–8 grade, was featured at the Seventh Annual Fair Haven Student Art Show on Tuesday, April 16, at Knollwood School on Hance Road.
An original work of art from every student in Sickles and Knollwood schools was displayed in the all-purpose room and hallways of the school.
Sponsored by the Fair Haven PTA, the show featured dozens of projects selected from the curriculum of both schools under the direction of art teachers Roseann LaBrocca and Rob Zupko. Students selected a personal work for submission to the show with guidance from their instructors.
The students drew inspiration from a diverse cross section of cultures, historic periods and artists and expressed themselves via a broad spectrum of medium including clay, pencil, acrylics, vinyl printing, watercolors and collage.
“The show succeeded in presenting a variety of mediums, but perhaps just as importantly, the cultural influences of different artists and their impact on society,” said LaBrocca, art teacher at Sickles school. “The Annual Fair Haven Art Show is a celebration of the creativity and self-discovery of the children of Sickles and Knollwood schools. It represents national and state standards in art education and incorporates interdisciplinary connections to literacy as required by the Common Core State Standards.”
Sickles’ art showcased kindergarten designs with line, inspired by Marc Chagall, and called “Tooth Fairies.” The first-grade exhibit was an exploration of color and line inspired by Paul Klee. Second-graders explored mixed media and positive and negative space, while simile pastel renderings and unique clay characters with narratives were completed by the third-graders.
Works produced by those in grades 4-6 included explorations of Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, non-objective art by Jackson Pollock, explorations in the style of Georgia O’Keefe and studies in the cultural significance of dragons in China.
Students in grades 7-8 participated in journeys of self discovery with seventh-graders completing self-portraits with shapes and lines that represented themselves, their personality traits, their emotions, their memories. Eighth-graders submitted linoleum prints of animals symbolizing their identities. In addition to learning about the medium of printmaking, students were encouraged to reflect upon themselves, how others perceive them and the person they wish to become.
“The process of self-discovery and the personal insight into how we represent ourselves and the world around us is an important milestone in the life of an artist,” Knollwood’s Zupko said. “The visual challenges students face with these projects forces students to reflect on who they are and how they relate to the world they live in.”
Stephanie Bates and Erin Gotch, art show co-chairwoman, said the district art show represented the best of what the schools have to offer. Efforts from every constituency of the community contributed to the success of the show, from the expertise and encouragement of the faculty, to the creativity and industry of the students and the good will and time commitment of student and parent volunteers.
