Region 15 School Art Display at Southbury Public Library

Region 15 School Art Display at Southbury Public Library's Gloria Cachion Gallery March 2 through March 29 

Region 15 schools are observing Youth Art Month again this year with a display of local student artwork in the Gloria Cachion Art Gallery of the Southbury Public Library from March 2nd through March 29th, 2019. 

The display coincides with Youth Art Month; a program administered nationally by the Council for Art Education (CFAE) and is celebrated by the Southbury Public Library and Region 15 communities.  The event emphasizes the value of art education for all students, encourages support for quality school art programs, and provides a medium for recognizing skills developed through visual arts experiences.

A selection of two-dimensional mixed media, paintings, photography, and drawings created by students at Pomperaug and Gainfield Elementary Schools, Rochambeau Middle School, and Pomperaug High (PHS) School will be on display, including work from students in the art enrichment and Advanced Placement Fine Art and Photography classes.

Highlighted pieces in this year's collection will include Region 15 students recently awarded gold key, silver key, or honorable mentions in the 30th annual Connecticut Regional Scholastic Art Awards held at Lincoln Theater at the University of Hartford in Hartford, CT in February.  Considered to be the most prestigious student art show in Connecticut, the Connecticut Regional Scholastic Art Awards includes over 1,500 student art works in mixed media categories that are selected on merit for inclusion in the show. 

"It is exciting to see our students' work being recognized for their talent and creativity.  Art education develops self-esteem, appreciation of the work of others, self-expression, as well as creative and critical thinking skills - all skills vital to our students' growth," said Jeromy Nelson, Director of Fine, Applied, and Technical Arts in Region 15.

Included in this year's display at the Southbury library will be Rochambeau Middle School (RMS) 8th grade Art Enrichment students, Vincent Del Vento, Gold Key award recipient, and Emily McRae, Silver Key award recipient. Using a process of closely referencing a photo according to a grid, the students created self-portraits in the photorealistic style of artist Chuck Close.

"The greatest challenge came from closely observing and matching colors. Students have to test many color variations and then check that they appear accurate when placed next to adjacent colors. Perseverance and attentive practice were key to their successful pieces," said Margaret Murphy, Art teacher at RMS.

 "Region 15 is proud to collaborate with the Southbury Library in showcasing artwork from our community youth.  Our community members reap the benefits of a collaborative partnership between our public libraries and public schools.  We encourage all residents to stop by to view the art pieces," said Nelson.

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Submitted by Southbury, CT

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