Hawley Student Artists Present A Gallery Of Talent

By Shannon Hicks

For their annual art show, the students and art faculty of Hawley School recently presented “Gallery 2003” in the halls and library of the Church Hill Road school. Parents and friends were invited to visit the school after hours on May 1 for the annual presentation of works in various media by all school students.

As has become tradition, art teacher Vicki Sheskin reminded visitors in her Gallery 2003 catalog greeting, each piece of artwork was hand selected by the artist. Students work on their art in class all year, but none of the work is taken home by the young artists until the end of the year. It is from this vast collection of work that students select what they feel best represents them for each spring’s presentation.

“This has been a year of change at Hawley School,” Mrs Sheskin wrote in her catalog notes. “We have welcomed many new teachers to our family and have seen our wonderful fifth graders and their teachers move on to the new Reed Intermediate School.

“One thing that hasn’t changed, however, is our love of art at Hawley School,” she continued. “While our student population may be young, we still have a super group of artists. I’m sure their work will delight and amaze you, as it always does me.”

Each of Hawley’s four grades were represented, beginning with September Self-Portraits, Pablo Picasso Shape Family “Blues,” Picasso People, “Fun Suns” Color Study, Clay Critters, “Party Time” Stitchery and Papier Mache Suns by first grade students.

Second graders contributed Crayon Texture Drawings, Still Life a la Matisse, Charcoal Mask Faces, Wearable Masks, Weavings, and Clay Mini-Masks to the exhibition.

Third graders were represented by their selections of “Under The Sea” Crayon Resists, Scratchboard Fish, Modigliani-Style Portraits, Food Posters, Independent Drawing Projects, and Native American Figures in Papier Mache.

Characterizing the talent of the fourth grade class were “Textures of Wildlife” Collages, Independent Drawing Collages, “Box-Y Surprises” in Pastel: Learning To Draw Forms, and Papier Mache “Piggy (Or Not) Banks.”

While visitors mingled among the artwork during the two-hour event, student musicians provided music to add to the evening’s entertainment.