Hundreds of students in St. Albert's Protestant school district, from every school and every educational level, kindergarten through to Grade 12, have broken through the barrier of publicly displaying their artwork.
These new fully-fledged exhibited artists, just back from spring break, are all part of the Art Start show opening today and they have their school district to thank.
This is the third year for the special program. It's a supplement to the regular art instruction but as far as the instructors are concerned, it is a vital part of the curriculum.
“It's integral to the studies and I think that's true for all of the schools,” explained Colleen Hewitt, art teacher at Paul Kane. “We're talking with the kids all through the year about how we're going to have the district show. I'll collect work through the year … so that we have a nice cross-section. It really highlights what teachers are doing in the visual arts with students in our district.”
She added that the still-young annual show may still have a few kinks to be worked out but otherwise she has high expectations for the art itself and for the turnout.
“I think this year is going to be the best ones yet. We're getting some experience.”
While participation in the exhibit is not mandatory, it is obvious that some students really see the value in submitting their works and seeing them on a public wall. This is Marissa McMullin's second showing and her last before she graduates from high school. She referred to it as a door opening up to show her a whole other world, where all of the fruits of her labours finally receive public appraisal. For some this can be a nerve-wracking time but she seemed pretty calm.
This new feature of St. Albert's visual arts calendar comes just weeks before the long-held tradition at Profiles Public Art Gallery. High Energy is an annual exhibit now in its 15th year and features the works of art students from all four of the area's high schools. It opens May 6 and runs for three weeks.
For all of those creative young adults, the St. Albert Painters' Guild is also seeking interested high school students (15 to 17 years old) for its annual scholarship to Summerscapes, a weeklong art program based at Red Deer College each summer. The deadline for applications is April 23. Call the guild's contact, Cheryl Moskaluk, at 780-460-8841 for more information.
The Art Start show is now on display at St. Albert Place. It runs until April 19.
