Hundreds of students and thousands of pieces of artwork.
That was the formula for a successful Arts Alive showcase, featuring a wide variety of art from all grade levels in the Escalon Unified School District.
Between just Escalon High School and El Portal Middle School, there are well over 400 students enrolled in art classes that put pieces in the show, which was hosted this past week on the EHS campus. Art from all schools in the district was included and with grade levels from transitional kindergarten to seniors represented. Classes from all schools also had a chance during the week to tour the show and an Open House was hosted on Thursday, March 6 for the community to come and view the works.
High school art teacher Erin Northcutt helped organize the showcase.
“We stayed away from a theme and instead kind of focused on the concept of creativity,” she explained. “That way teachers and art teachers could use their discretion to kind of think outside the box or come up with something; we didn’t want to limit anybody in terms of projects.”
She added that last year, her first assisting with the Arts Alive display, she learned how much work goes in to curating the show and preparing it for viewing by district students and the public.
“Just seeing the student ownership and involvement; this is so important, such a big event for so many of our student artists,” she said of the high school participation. “It’s just really heartwarming to see them make realizations about themselves and the value of their work through the process of curating and displaying.”
Student helpers worked varying shifts throughout the week, running stations such as button making, spin art, air brush tattoos and face painting.
Travis Silveira, a senior, was busy assisting at the spin art station.
“Just love the artwork, to be able to see art, to be able to express yourself through art, it’s really a good connection,” Silveira said, adding that he likes to “see the happy faces” of the younger students when they do creative projects.
Overall, Northcutt said the show is a testament to the dedication of the students involved and a true showcase of talent. She also likes to see the reaction of the younger artists when finding their art on display.
“It’s really neat to see the kids just enjoy their hard work and realize the value; I think art kind of goes beyond just the piece and in the process of creating, the kids learn things about themselves and usually they’re all positive things,” Northcutt explained. “Having them come through and enjoy the artwork that they’ve created and their peers and the older kids have created, it’s one of those things that is very meaningful in the sense that art is just very universal; everybody can see something different in the same piece, everybody has their favorites and there’s different pieces that speak to them.”
