Art Finds A Permanent Spot At Sandy Hook School ‘Gallery’

By Shannon Hicks

The art room at Sandy Hook School was abuzz with activity one night last week, as fifth grade students returned after school hours with their parents for a special one-night exhibition of their artworks.

For a few hours on June 7, the school’s hallways leading to the art room, and especially the art room itself, became temporary gallery space.

While much of the art will be taken home at the end of the school year, the fifth grade students will also be leaving a few of their projects behind when they leave for the summer. “We Are All the Same on the Inside,” a plaster sculpture work in progress depicting figures, will have permanent placement in the courtyard of the school once it is completed.

Also being worked on was “The Magic Garden” — ceramic garden ornaments mounted on aluminum sticks, which will ultimately find a place in the school’s courtyard. The Magic Garden’s ornaments included flowers, angels, and insects.

“These are beautiful, yes, and parents would love them,” art teacher Leslie Gunn was overhead saying. “But these projects are something the students can leave behind for future classes.”

A sculpted copper tree will also be placed in the school’s courtyard. The “tree” had been created of copper pipes and copper-shaped leaves, and then each leaf had been inscribed with a message selected by students. A large poster featuring paper leaves with additional messages accompanied the full tree.

Among the words of wisdom the fifth graders are leaving behind are “Save the world from its own destruction,” “Never give up because sometimes you can do things you never thought were possible,” “Peace on earth,” and “Have a nice time next year at Sandy Hook School.”

In addition to the permanent projects for SHS, the young artists also created smaller, take-home works of art this year. On view last week was a series called “Portraits in Clay,” a variety of ceramic vessels and masks. The masks, which were also made of clay, were each accompanied by explanations by the students of what their masks and the colors they incorporated stood for.

Finally, the art room was dotted with six tall and colorful sculpture projects, each the result of a group of students working together.