All-district AAPS art exhibition continues through this week

Posted on May 31, 2011 by Casey Hans

The best of K-12 student art from last year’s show – with video

By Casey Hans
AAPSNews Service

Huron High School senior Nick Freese was eager to participate in this year’s Ann Arbor Public Schools K-12 Art Exhibition with a self-portrait that reflects his love of nature and has a bit of whimsy.

Nick Freese and his self-portrait on display at the K-12 Art Exhibition.

In the portrait, he is upside down and becoming part of a tree – roots and all. Freese’s work is among dozens of student works that continue on display through this week at the University of Michigan Slusser Gallery on North Campus.

Freese’s 3-by-4 foot artwork uses acrylics, plus spray paint and markers to achieve the final result. He said the portrait was based on a class project that “was supposed to be reflective.” He based his work on a photo taken by a friend, and let it develop from there.

“”My belief that everything is one in nature and everything is constantly moving,” he said, describing how he approached his art. Freese said he hopes to someday be an art teacher.

“My mom’s an artist – it skipped a generation,” explained Nick’s mom, Beth Freese, who attended an opening reception with her son. “He thinks everything through and then acts. He’s always had a plan.”

Pottery, paintings, jewelry and mixed media are all represented in the district’s largest student art show of the year that through this weekend. Exhibit hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and noon to 7 p.m. Saturdays. The Slusser Gallery is in the U-M School of Art & Design Building, 2000 Bonisteel Blvd., just off of Fuller.

Visitors to the Slusser Gallery view artwork done by Ann Arbor Public Schools students.

Works from AAPS students in all grades are represented in the show and, for the first time, all elementary schools have a presence, said director of this year show, Chris Cerniglia, an art teacher at Scarlett Middle School.

Organizers had to balance the amount of art by school to find space for the extra 18 schools. “This year, we were happy to include every elementary school,” said Cerniglia, who coordinated the hanging of the show. “I think that’s what so powerful here: It’s a full district show. Rebuilding that feel is kind of neat. (Students) were all excited about trying to get into it. It just exposes them to more and more.”

Cerniglia said the show is also continuing to build a relationship with the university, which has graciously allowed the district in the Slusser Gallery for the second year.

Huron High School graphic design teacher Jason Treece had his students design art show posters for a third year. They promote the event, but are also on display as artwork at the show.

Families visiting the Slusser Gallery view works of art from Ann Arbor Public Schools students.

He said students judged each other’s work and came up with four solid designs; all are on display.

“I only chose what the students liked,” he said. “This was their thing. I was really tickled. Each year it gets a little bit better.”

In addition to the student show, the Ann Arbor Art Teachers Spring 2011 exhibition runs through June 10 at the Work Gallery, 306 S. State St.

School Bells: K-12 art exhibition reception is Tuesday at Slusser

Posted on May 16, 2011 by Casey Hans

For more news and achievements in the Ann Arbor Public Schools, click here for “This Week in the Ann Arbor Public Schools” from our superintendent.

Artwork of students from all grades will be on exhibit at U-M's Slusser Gallery through June 5.

Dozens of student artworks will be on display starting this week at the Jean Paul Slusser Gallery located in the U-M School of Art and Design, 2000 Bonisteel, on the University of Michigan’s North Campus. Works from students in all grades from the Ann Arbor Public Schools will be represented.

A public reception for the Ann Arbor Public Schools K-12 Art Exhibition will be from 7-8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 17 at the gallery. Everything from multi-media productions, pottery, paintings, jewelry and mixed media is represented in the district’s largest student art show of the year, which runs through June 5. Exhibit hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and noon to 7 p.m. Saturdays.

The Slusser Gallery is in the U-M School of Art & Design Building, 2000 Bonisteel Blvd. Evening parking is located off of Fuller Street.

In addition to the student show, the Ann Arbor Art Teachers Spring 2011 exhibition will run from May 17 through June 10 at the Work Gallery, 306 S. State St. An opening reception for this event is Friday, May 20 from 5-9 p.m.

Picnic Pops event at Pioneer May 21

A day of popular music is scheduled for the front lawn of Pioneer High School, 601 W. Stadium Blvd., Ann Arbor on Saturday, May 21. Music, food and fun will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Skyline hosts TED event this fall

Skyline High School is hosting the “TEDxSkylineHS” conference on Oct. 15 with a theme of “Can’t Wait Around for Politics.”

The conference is designed to bring professional teachers together to share cutting-edge teaching innovation. Those with an innovative idea may apply to speak at the conference.

For more information aobut TED, visit www.ted.org and watch past TEDTalks. Information about independently organized TEDx events may be found at www.ted.org/tedx. Visit online for more information, to join to attend, to nominate a speaker, or to volunteer to help. Details: E-mail Sara Duvall.

Huron: 12th at state Science Olympiad

Huron High School’s Science Olympiad team took 12th place overall in the Michigan Science Olympiad competition at Michigan State University on April 30. Huron was among 48 teams competing. Teams competed in various fields from Chemistry to Robotics to Forensics and a music competition called Sounds of Music, where competitors play homemade instruments.

The last last time Huron went to the state competition was in 2007 when the River Rats placed 10th overall.

“Our team is totally student-driven – they set everything up,” said Dave Russell, adviser to the team. “The events focus on problem-solving, things we hope we’re teaching in school. They’re really relevant things. You’re putting your problem-solving skills to the test.

Russell said that about 30 students each year take part in the after-school voluntary club, with 15 students competing. Co-captains put together practice tests and the students work as a team. “These kids do great – they’re just going above and beyond,” he added. “It’s a really impressive group of kids.”

This year, the Huron team took second place at regional competition to qualify for the states. The top two teams for every region go to the Michigan Science Olympiad. “It’s definitely bragging rights,” Russell added.

2 receive Celebration of Excellence awards

Two staff members have received 2010-11 Celebration of Excellence Awards. Jennifer Kleber, a teacher assistant at Carpenter Elementary School, was nominated by Michelle Bobiney and Jason Treece, a teacher at Huron High School was nominated by Phyllis and Rich Coleman, both for Outstanding Customer Service.

Kleber was awarded for the care that she gives to Bobiney’s 7-year old first grader, who has gone through two kidney transplants and related medical treatments.

“Our family has had a difficult, but well-worth-it path on our journey of health,” her mother said in her nomination. “I would not risk her hard-earned health with just anyone. When she started first grade, I was hesitant to let go, but I knew it was best for her overall development to separate myself a bit and let her become more independent. For the first time in her life, I was allowing myself to trust someone else to care for her and commit to learning how to take care of her many medical needs.

“I was impressed and relieved. I truly know I can trust her. Bobiney said Kleber is also helping Rachel in positive ways, giving her confidence in her abilities and helping her to become more independent physically and socially.”

Treece “motivates and inspires his students,” said his nominator. “He has an open-door policy to work with students who want or need extra help. He volunteered to be our son’s academic coach this year We and our son are most grateful.”

DONORSCHOOSE.ORG PROJECT – Teacher Sue Beech of Pattengill Elementary School has had an up-cycling T-shirt project funded through donorschoose.org. The site purchased paint, beads, glue, scissors and Beech purchased T-shirts from Salvation Army. Her students took the used t-shirts and decorated them and they now wear their new glitzy shirts to school, Beech said.

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June book events around Ann Arbor, as provided by Nicola’s Books. Nicola’s is a partner of the AAPSNews and a sponsor of this website:

Friday, June 3 at 7 p.m. – Meet author David Anthony here with his debut novel focusing on our culture of excess, “Something for Nothing”. It’s the mid-1970s, and Martin Anderson’s small aircraft business is tanking, as is his extravagant suburban lifestyle. So when he’s given the opportunity to clear his debt by using one of his planes to make a few drug runs between California and Mexico, Martin doesn’t think twice . . . or at all, for that matter. A deeply funny and suspenseful book.

Monday, June 6 at 7 p.m. – Mary Doria Russell, author of “The Sparrow”, “Thread of Grace” and others will be at Nicola’s with her latest novel, “Doc”. The year is 1878 and violence is random and routine in Dodge City, but when the burned body of a mixed-blood boy named Johnnie Sanders is discovered, his death shocks a part-time policeman named Wyatt Earp. And it is a matter of strangely personal importance to Doc Holliday, the frail twenty-six-year-old dentist who has just opened an office at No. 24, Dodge House.

Tuesday, June 7 at 7 p.m. - Dean Bakopoulos, author of “Please Don’t Come Back From the Moon”, will be here with his latest novel “My American Unhappiness”. “Why are you so unhappy?” That’s the question that Zeke Pappas asks almost everybody he meets as part of an obsessive project, “The Inventory of American Unhappiness.” The answers he receives–a mix of true sadness and absurd complaint–create a collage of woe.

Thursday, June 9 at 7 p.m. – Author Thomas Foster, Professor of English at the University of Michigan, Flint, will be here at Nicola’s with his highly entertaining and informative new book on the twenty-five works of literature that have most shaped the American character. Foster applies his much-loved combination of wit, know-how, and analysis to explain how each work has shaped our very existence as readers, students, teachers, and Americans.

Sunday, June 12 at 3 p.m. – Dave Moore, a chaplain in Ypsilanti, will be at the store with “Father’s Love”, the story of his cross-country search for his missing son.

Tuesday, June 14 at 7 p.m. – Local children’s author Shutta Crum will be here with her latest picture book, “Mine”. This adorable, playful, picture-based book features two very young children and an adorable dog navigating the troubles and triumphs of sharing.

Wednesday, June 15 at 7 p.m. – Local author Karen Simpson will be at Nicola’s with her debut novel “Act of Grace”. Why would Grace Johnson, a bright, African-American high school senior, save the life of a Ku Klux Klansman named Jonathan Gilmore?That question hovers over Grace’s hometown of Vigilant, Michigan, and few people, black or white, understand her actions-especially since rumor has it that many years ago, a member of the Gilmore family murdered several African-American residents.

Thursday, June 16 at 7 p.m. – Danielle Sosin will be here with “The Long-Shining Waters”, her luminous debut novel set along the turbulent shores of Lake Superior.North Country, the great freshwater expanse. Frigid. Lethal. Wildly beautiful. “The Long-Shining Waters” presents three stories whose characters are separated by centuries and circumstance, yet connected across time by a shared geography.

Saturday, June 18 after our usual 11 a.m. story time: Meet the pig from the popular “If You Give a Pig a Pancake” children’s picture book!

Monday, June 20 at 7 p.m. – Tayari Jones will be at Nicola’s with her third novel set in Atlanta, “Silver Sparrow”. Set in a middle-class neighborhood in Atlanta in the 1980s, the novel revolves around James Witherspoon ‘s two families the public one and the secret one. When the daughters from each family meet and form a friendship, only one of them knows they are sisters. It is a relationship destined to explode when secrets are revealed and illusions shattered.

Tuesday, June 21 from 6-7 p.m – Illustrators Lou Fancher and Steve Johnson will be here with their latest book “For the Love of Music: The Remarkable Story of Maria Anna Mozart”, a book for children ages 5 to 8. By the time she was 12, she was considered one of the finest pianists in Europe, but today few people know her name. Maria Mozart, like her famous brother Wolfgang, was a musical prodigy. Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher have collaborated on many award-winning children’s books including “My Many Colored Days “by Dr. Seuss and “New York’s Bravest “by Mary Pope Osborne among others.

Wednesday, June 22 at 7 p.m. – Meet adventurer Loreen Niewenhuis as she talks about her book, “A 1,000 Mile Walk on the Beach: One Woman’s Trek of the Perimeter of Lake Michigan”. The book explores both the geology of the lake and the measure of a person, an adventure in discovery of self and place.

Thursday, June 23 at 7 p.m. – Alan Furst, master of the spy thriller and one of the great war novelists of our time, will be here at Nicola’s with the paperback release of his latest work “Spies of the Balkans”, a tense political drama set in 1940′s Greece.

Sunday June 26, at 3 p.m. – We have a dual appearance by local authors both encouraging people to get out and enjoy the great outdoors in and around Ann Arbor. Brenda Bentley will be discussing her book “Riverwalks Ann Arbor” and Rob Pulcipher will be discussing his book “Dirt Road Washtenaw: Biking the Back Roads”. Come out and discover the different ways you can enjoy all the beauty of our region, and get healthy exercise at the same time.

The best of K-12 student art found at U-M’s Slusser Gallery

Posted on May 24, 2010 by Casey Hans

VIDEO BELOW: Families visit art show reception, including a clip from members of a Community High School Jazz Band combo.

By Casey Hans
AAPSNews Service

Dozens of families filled an opening reception this month at the Jean Paul Slusser Gallery on the University of Michigan’s North Campus which features dozens of student works of art from the Ann Arbor Public Schools.

Everything from multi-media productions, pottery, paitings, jewelry and mixed media is represented in the district’s largest student art show of the year, which runs through Friday, June 4.

Laura Radwan, a senior at Huron High School, had two pieces of jewelry exhibited and said she thought the show was a wonderful way to top off her time in Ann Arbor. “I hope in college I can take something just as fun,” she said of her art experience at Huron. She plans to attend Ohio University in Athens where she will study music production.

“It’s wonderful to see what the students can do,” added Sigrid Radwin, Laura’s grandmother who came with a vanload of family members and friends to enjoy the reception.

The spring multi-media event features the collective work of selected students in grades kindergarten through 12 and showcases approximately 400 works of art, said Steve Coron, a Community High School art teacher who is coordinating this year’s event. Ann Arbor art teachers selected the works to be exhibited.

Robin Bailey, fine arts coordinator for The Ann Arbor Public Schools, estimated that several hundred persons attended the evening reception, which included refreshments as well as entertainment by the Community High School Jazz Band. “Their students (U-M) have left, so it worked well for us. They’re thrilled to have us here,” she said.

Bailey said art teachers spent a lot of time matting student work and preparing it for the gallery presentation. “I just think it’s wonderful that kids have an opportunity to see their work in a public space,” she added.

Anja, a second-grader at Haisley Elementary School, said she based her art piece on the work of American painter Georgia O’Keeffe. “I just did my picture in art class and it got picked,” she said, showing off her displayed work to her proud family.

Dicken Elementary School first-grader Andy and his sister, Casey, a second-grader, both had artwork displayed. Casey’s papier maché-style fish was exhibited in a work she dubbed “Fishie.”

Eberwhite Elementary School parent Nate Berent-Spillson was on hand to see his kindergarten son’s work, but was enjoying the others as well. “I think this is great,” he said. “The range of different kinds of art and different mediums and the range of grades is impressive.”

In previous years, the show had been hosted at the U-M Rackham Building, then moved to the Washtenaw Intermediate School District center and came back to U-M last year. “The School of Art & Design has embraced our program,” Coron said. “We’re very happy to be there.”

The Slusser Gallery is in the U-M School of Art & Design Building, 2000 Bonisteel Blvd. Evening parking is located off of Fuller Street. Exhibit hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday and noon to 7 p.m. Saturday.

In addition to the student exhibit, Ann Arbor art teachers and alumni offer their spring exhibit of art at the U-M Work Gallery through June 8. The Work Gallery is at 306 S. State St., Ann Arbor.

Casey Hans edits this newsletter for The Ann Arbor Public Schools. E-mail her or call 734-994-2090 (internal ext. 51228.)

Student, teacher art exhibits underway at U-M galleries

Posted on May 10, 2010 by Casey Hans

Reception for student work is Tuesday evening

The Ann Arbor Public Schools Art Exhibit – the largest student art event of the year – is underway at the Jean Paul Slusser Gallery at the University of Michigan School of Art & Design.

The spring multi-media event features the collective work of students in grades kindergarten through 12 and features approximately 400 works of art, said Steve Coron, a Community High School art teacher who coordinates the event.

The annual show was previously at the U-M Rackham Building, then moved to the Washtenaw Intermediate School District center and came back to U-M last year. “The School of Art & Design has embraced our program,” Coron said. “We’re very happy to be there.”

Pictured are works from the teachers' exhibit: "Grand Sable #2" by Steve Coron (left) and "Wright Barn" by Ann Hendrick.

An opening reception for students, the families and the general public takes place from 7-8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 11 at the gallery, located at 2000 Bonisteel Blvd. on the U-M North Campus. Evening parking is located off of Fuller Street and behind the School of Art & Design building.

The exhibit will run through June 4. The hours are Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays noon to 7 p.m. (closed on holidays.)

In addition to the student exhibit, Ann Arbor art teachers and alumni offer their spring exhibit of art at the U-M Work Gallery through June 8. A reception for that exhibit will be at 7 p.m. Friday, May 14. The Work Gallery is at 306 S. State St., Ann Arbor.