Arts Access project at North Park Elementary promotes creativity for all
Principal Alden Jack and students work on the Arts Access project
On Thursday, November 21st, students and teachers at North Park Elementary School celebrated the culminating event of the school's Beverley Taylor Sorenson Arts Access project as a student-made sculpture was hung in the library, showcasing hours of hard work and creativity.
The sculpture was created through the vision and guidance of Marquetta Johnson and Jeff Mathers, who are visiting artists from Atlanta, Georgia. Johnson is a textile artist with an eye for color. She helped the students design and paint large swaths of fabric which were to hang in window frames made by Mathers, a sculpture artist. Under the direction of Johnson, Mathers, assistants Jenna Coffin and Kenzo Tillitt, and North Park art teacher Anna Clark, students planned, designed and created the sculpture. The culminating celebration ended with hanging the finished sculpture from the library ceiling for all to see.
Students work on the Arts Access sculpture
According to Mathers, the goal of the Arts Access is “full inclusion.” All participating students contributed to the project and special education students played an important role. As part of the collaboration, students learned how to use a wide range of art supplies and tools--even power tools--to create the sculpture.
Visiting artist Jeff Mathers
Visiting artist assistants Jenna Coffin and Kenzo Tillit
Alden Jack, principal at North Park, fully supports the Arts Access vision and feels that projects such as this one enrich the school. “For me,” Jack said, “the Arts Access Program has been a remarkable way to bring a school community together and to experience integration of the arts in our school. Not only do kids get a great foundation in the elements of art, but they also get a chance to see how art can enrich and extend learning throughout the day.”
The completed sculpture hangs in the North Park library
Many thanks to artists Jeff Mathers, Marquetta Johnson, and Kenzo Tillitt for helping inspire creativity and inclusion with this project. Thanks also to the Beverley Taylor Sorenson Arts program, which adds so much to our schools.