Heather Ainsley
ECB Publishing, Inc.
Saturday, April 2, launched the beginning of a month-long exhibit at the Jefferson Arts Gallery spotlighting the unique talents of local student artists. The walls of the gallery are adorned in colorful and creative projects of art students belonging to the Jefferson County Homeschool Association and Jefferson Somerset. Bridget Akers, who has taught Art for the last 18 years, 16 of which have been at Somerset, attended the opening of the gallery show to represent her students, who vary from Grade 6 through Grade 12.
Akers mentioned that Somerset participates in the Student Art Show each year, and features a variety of works of art that the students have been working on throughout the school year in her class. “I choose the medium, and the students get to decide what to make within that medium.” Akers says, adding that for this year's show she picked student work from lessons in grid drawing, Aboriginal dot art, paper quilling, yard drawings, and sketchbook assignments.
Akers believes that student art shows are an important part of building awareness for the importance of local art programs in schools. “The public should be aware of what students are creating,” she said, “and understand that they aren't just using their class hours wasting their time.”
Art instruction is crucial for students, as it not only provides them with a creative method for communicating their world to others, it can also help in the development of fine motor skills, language and social skills, decision making, risk-taking and inventiveness. Imaginative activities for young learners can lead to better social interactions and healthy emotional regulation.We live in our modern society, surrounded with a culture that is full of music, design and entertainment, and the significance of art and its impact on nearly every facet of our environment is extremely prevalent. In spite of this, art classes are often the first programs to see budget cuts, and have accessibility limited for students.
Gallery shows like this give an important window into the creative side of our next generation; Young men and women who take pride in sharing their vision, talents and hard work. The walls of the Jefferson Arts Gallery are full, as fragments of creation hang thoughtfully upon them, the musings of future architects, graphic designers, film-makers, musicians and illustrators.
In the hopes of bringing much-deserved attention to the work of these wonderfully talented students, Bridget Akers has offered an incentive to members of her class. For each person that a student brings in to the gallery during the duration of the Student Art Show, which will continue through the month of April, she will give 100 extra credit points to that student. Visitors who come to enjoy the gallery show must sign in on the extra credit sheet, and provide the name of the student they are coming to support. To young aspiring artists, she says, “Be true to yourself. Explore, and do not give up. You may find that the mistakes you make now may one day become stepping stones to your greatest successes.”
For those wishing to come and view the work of student artists, the Jefferson Arts Gallery is open Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. and Wednesday nights from 5:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m., and is located at 575 W. Washington St. in Monticello.