Art Show

Saint David's Winter Festival of Art and Music is well under way.  Given our school-wide theme this year, The Aesthetic,  the festival takes on an extra special meaning.  In addition to many musical and performance events, the festival also celebrates boys creativity in the visual arts.  Hung throughout and around the school, boys work is on display.

Walking though the school today I snapped a couple of pictures with my cell phone.  One of the five component skills of drawing is the perceiving and rendering of the (negative) spaces in between and around objects.  This first piece by Christopher W., 8th Grade, explores this component in bicycles.

After examining reproductions of tribal art of Ghana and Australia aboriginals, first grade boys worked with ink, watercolor, and tempera to create their own works with patterned backgrounds.  Here Luke D., inspired by his two cats, has created a patterned background of white interlocking lines with the colorful creatures highlighted in the center.

Above is an example of the fifth grade's exploration of jungle landscape drawings with imaginary animals' outline traced with a black line.  Tim C.'s use of color and overlapping shapes gives his piece a real sense of depth.

Like us, shoes we are told, can have individual personalities which are revealed in shape, form, light and dark.  Inspired by paintings by Van Gogh, eighth grade boys observed carefully contour and value to produce these drawings.  Here Jibri L. illustrates his shoe revealing a little of his personality.


In preparation for their "snowman" using mixed media, prekindergarten boys viewed and discussed Anna Mary Moses' winter scenes that featured people working or playing in snowy landscapes.  Here Ryan depicts "My imaginary snowman can make loud noises."  And loud it is!

Based on Gothic Rose Windows and Mandala designs from many different cultures, third grade boys learned to mix color and draw with black tempera paint.  These are giant works that measure some 3-4 feet in diameter.  They cover the walls on both sides of the Building 14 spiral stairwell as it winds its way up through the school -- spectacular!

After studying the style and proportions of ancient Egyptian figures in wall paintings, fourth grade boys chose an actual, or created their own deity to portray in their "wall painting."  Their work, like many of the pieces on display throughout the festival, are tied directly to other subject area curriculum.  In this case, the boys' "wall paintings" are connected with their study of ancient civilizations in history and literature.  These works are life size (boy size) consuming large surface areas on the walls leading into Hyman Hall--well worth the visit.

And finally, I came across the Omega Friendship Portraits on the first floor.  Each Omega boy chose a partner to draw in an imaginary environment.  Using water color and fine tipped black outline markers, the boys illustrated each other.  In this final piece, Finn O'S. portrays his partner ... happily somewhere!

The Festival is well worth your time.  Come by and see these and many, many more examples of stunning art and a true representation of the aesthetic at work at Saint David's.