Jazz music seeping through open mosaic doors, slightly muted conversations , and radiant lights bouncing off expertly arranged sculptures, paintings and drawings all blended together to create a night that both celebrated SDA’s talented students and embodied the essence of the school.
Last Thursday night, the Artists for a Cause club and SDA’s art classes put on Art fest to open the art gallery showcasing work from this semester’s students .
“We knew we wanted to open the gallery in some way to encourage people to come look at the art,” said Artist for a Cause President and SDA senior Chelsea Kanzler. “We wanted to make it something that really spoke to SDA.”
The event was held in the evening from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. and took place in the Mosaic and the adjacent art gallery. It was open to students, families, and the community and over 200 people came throughout the evening.
The art pieces ranged from sculptures, to water colors, to drawing and there was even a reel of short student films projected outside the gallery.
Additionally, inside the mosaic, art from middle school students was on display for people to see.
“We wanted to involve the community more and give the students a chance to have their art seen by a wider audience,” said SDA art teacher Kajsa Medak.
A special point of interest was the interactive sculpture in the mosaic that anyone and everyone was able to contribute to. The piece, a close to life size Paper-Mache, white unicorn was developed by Medak’s Studio Art class and became a collaboration worked on by people from all different art classes.
Those who attended had the opportunity to decorate the piece with white slips of paper onto which they could write or draw whatever they desired.
“We really wanted to do a piece that would help everyone feel like they are a part of the art here at SDA because we feel that art is a really binding thing,” senior Sarah Dale said.
The sculpture was originally supposed to be a mustang, Dale said. However, they later decided that a unicorn really embodied the fun and silly spirit of the school.
Once completed, the Studio art class plans to display the sculpture on campus.
“We are hoping that we’ll be able to move it around to different spots in the school,” Dale said. “It would be cool to have it both in the library and the Mosaic for some time.”
In addition to the collaborative piece, a unified SDA community was exhibited by those involved in creating art fest. The opening was pulled off by the joint efforts of countless students who were dedicated to making the event special.
“I really wanted the students involved and to take accountability,” Medak said. “I am so excited with how all the student s stepped up to the plate, went above and beyond, and showed amazing teamwork so that it all came together.”
Much more than just creating the art went into the event. Art students and Artists for a Cause members had to advertise, set- up the gallery, and work during the night.
Senior Celine Parker was actively involved in curating the gallery.
Setting up the pieces in the gallery took about six hours and four class periods, Parker said.
“It’s really about a lot of aesthetic little details,” said Parker. “But you aren’t really thinking about that because you are really just making your own big painting; so you go with your gut.”
Parker worked on curating along with junior Jamisyn Atlas, junior Julia Wagler, sophomore Emma Washburn, and senior Carmen Lugo.
“We have a secret rating system [of where pictures were placed],” Parker said. “But a good magician never reveals their secrets.”
This year the club also aimed to involve more aspects from the SDA community in the gallery opening ,Kanzler said.
The event featured live music from the SDA jazz band, as well as a preview of SDA’s upcoming play “Ashgirl”.
The night was lively, the art intriguing and the event no something to miss next year.
“This is creation, this is people letting themselves out, and I love that,” Parker said.
If you weren’t able to make it to opening night, be sure to stop by the gallery to check out the student art. The gallery is open at lunch and after school.