MONSON ARTS HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAM: Off We Go!

Monson Arts High School students have now rolled up their sleeves and gotten down to the business of creating and making work. After a first class of meet-and-greet team activities, getting to know Monson Arts staff and, especially, their fellow students from 6 local schools, students picked up pens, pencils, and brushes under the direction of teachers Alan Bray and Dawn Potter to start their creative studies. 

Visual Artists

Class started with a large collaborative drawing, pencils in hands, working off each other by connecting individual objects to create one long drawing which they posted on the wall in the Moore Building Studio where they then related their experience in taking on the project. Transitioning, students started to put together gesso panels, setting the stage for their future paintings to come in the next few sessions. Additionally, Alan went over the general outline of what to expect for the class in the coming year and also talked about getting into sculpture and model making, something many of the students haven’t had much experience with as young artists. Artists also visited the Gascoine Gallery to view “Tree Talk”, an exhibition that highlights a love of trees in various forms of art where they spoke with curator Jemma Gascoine about the show. 

In the next visual arts class, students started painting on the panels they’d prepared last time. They also visited two new Monson Arts Residents studios in the afternoon that were already bursting with energy and ideas. Both artists (Posey Moulton and Conner Darling) reinforced a lot of what Alan and James had been talking about in class which was an invaluable reinforcement. Students will again be visiting them in two weeks which will be a great chance to see their progress.

Writers

Writers got down to writing! In Dawn Potter’s words, “On our first full day together, the writers spent time settling into their own power as artists. We discussed several poems that centered around ideas about language and self-awareness, and we began working to notice the strengths and curiosities that were showing up in our own new writing. Individually and in small groups, we responded to writing prompts and started becoming familiar with one another’s voices. Toward the end of the day, we had an open discussion about some of our struggles as writers and talked about different ways of managing our fears and worries.” 

For the next class, “the writers spent the day learning about epistolary poems–that is, poems that are also letters–as a way to begin thinking about different kinds of audience in writing. We wrote to our younger selves, to our drivers’ license photos, and even to Zeus, and at the end of the day we worked in pairs and small groups to write poems to each other.” 

Also, Nina Maclaughin came to chat with the writing students. She has a background in journalism, carpentry, memoir writing and novels about Greek mythology. She loved the questions she got! “Were you always this confident?” 

Later this fall Monson Arts students will have an opportunity to participate in Write ME, a statewide poet laureate initiative that matches up people from around Maine who want to try writing poem-letters to each other. All educators and students are encouraged to learn more about this project via free workshops offered by the Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance. Monson Arts staff members Stuart Kestenbaum and Dawn Potter are among the many poets around the state who have been actively involved in this initiative.

 

Link to Dawn’s upcoming online epistolary workshop specifically for educators

Link to an upcoming online epistolary poetry workshop specifically for youth

 

To add one more thing: We are actively mixing our Monson Arts Residents into the high school program this year. As much as we can, we will be having students visit studios, have professional writers visit Dawn’s writing cohort, and have students ask questions and discover what it’s like to be a professional creative. We recognize the strength in our high school program is that we not only have amazing educators to teach students, we have access to hundreds of working artists and writers who are more than happy to share their stories. This is a unique opportunity for students to interact with individuals who may inspire them to pursue their dreams! Our current roster of Monson Arts Residents: 

 

Visual Artists

Pamela/Posey Moulton – Maine

Conner Darling – Michigan

Sabrina Basten – Germany

Jil Crary-Ross – New York

Roberley Bell – Massachusetts

 

Writers

Natasha Markov-Riss – Maine

Stephen de Filippo – California/Australia

Kathy Z Price – New York

Nina MacLaughlin – Massachusetts

Margaret Whitehead  – Massachusett