John Waldron to showcase youth art

Monroe County middle school and high school students will have the chance to wander into three art galleries and view their own art displayed for everyone to see.
The Ivy Tech John Waldron Arts Center’s Youth Art Month gallery will open at 5 p.m. today and will remain open until March 29.

Three out of the four gallery spaces in the Waldron are dedicated to this exhibition, which displays art from the Monroe County public middle schools and high schools.

“The middle school and high school art programs are so good,” Gallery Director Julie Roberts said. “We have the best art departments at the high school level in the state of Indiana. People can’t believe the quality of the work based on the ages of the kids.”

The gallery shows art from all different media including painting, jewelry design,
ceramics, metal, graphic design and stained glass from seventh to 12th graders.
Art teachers from each of the schools select student artwork for the exhibits in this annual show.

Selections are based on a variety of projects, lessons and design challenges, Bloomington High School North art teacher Diane Davis-Deckard said.

Not only does the gallery give the kids a chance to display their work, Roberts said she sees the show as a good chance for professional experience.

“It’s a real-world experience for the students, especially if they want to go into the arts,” Roberts said. “The sooner they make contacts with the professional art world, the better.”

These exhibits and experiences sometimes lead students to actually sell their work, Davis-Deckard said.

“I think it’s extremely important for students to exhibit their work in a professional setting,” she said. “It increases their confidence in their ability to be successful at something they love to do.”

Davis-Deckard said the exhibit allows people from the Bloomington community to see young artists’ work, and it provides credibility to the art programs in their schools.

“We have students who are national contest winners almost yearly, and students who are winners in state level contests every year,” Davis-Deckard said. “Whether it is a contest or an exhibit, students are thrilled to be a part of the art community in
Bloomington.”

Roberts said supporting the arts is the main goal for Ivy Tech.

“Ivy Tech is a big believer in arts education because it’s proven to help in all of their classes,” Roberts said. “Students are more likely to go on to college and be successful if they’ve taken art classes.”

Davis-Deckard has noticed the same trend as well.

“It has been proven that those students who study art score higher on a wide variety of tests including the SATs,” she said. “Students know they have done a good job by the product they have created.”

At the event, there will also be awards presented to some of the best student artists from a local business, Pygmalion’s Art Supply Store.

Pygmalion’s is giving hundreds of dollars in awards to the students so they can buy art supplies for their projects — which are not cheap, Roberts added.

Despite potential costs, Davis-Deckard sees the art program growing and
improving.

Every year, the AP art classes are increasing their numbers and more are being offered, she said.

“I see wonderful things happening in our schools,” she said.

“Our students are energetic and hardworking. Our art programs have grown. And it’s fun to see the positive things students are doing.”