On Saturday afternoon we went to an all-school art exhibition at our granddaughter's school in Clinton County, Ohio. Art teacher Dan McKay had set up a show that appeared to have at least one piece from every child in the school, ranging from pottery to painting, at all grade levels. The 2-D artwork was hung individually and covered the walls of the gymnasium and the auditeria. Paintings, drawings and collages were propped on chairs and easels throughout both rooms and 3-D projects were arranged on large, round tables. Our granddaughter's class had made clay turtles, their backs textured and painted. The show took a great deal of work to arrange and looked fantastic. (One of our grandson's favorites was a giant sculpture of a bag of Tostitos!)
I was astonished at the variety and quality of the work. Most of the work was project oriented, as with the turtles, abstractions, portraits, and a snow scene-collage, for example, but many showed delightful originality within the themes. The pictures were fairly large and very colorful. Many of the young artists have excellent observation and skills with a variety of mediums, including charcoal, pastel, oil pastel, collage, and acrylics.
Any artist will tell you what a thrill it is to see your work on display for others to enjoy. Kudos to Mr. McKay for making this happen for the students at Clinton-Massie. I hope the parents and community continue to support the school's art program and help to provide supplies for these budding artists.
Art, an endangered species in many school systems, is alive and well in Clinton County.
Labels: art exhibition, child art, clinton county, clinton-massie schools, Dan McKay, student art
