Deb Meier, who has taught art in the Batavia City School District for 31 years and is about to retire, provided the governing board with an annual overview of activities in the Art Department at last night's trustees' meeting.
Students are exposed to art at all grade levels and instruction, she said, isn't just about visual presentation. The courses hit on history, writing, culture, critical thinking, science, and math, providing cross-curriculum lessons.
"You can see throughout, we take a lot of elements of art -- the line, shape, color, texture, value, space -- and we teach the kids now to build on it each year," Meier said.
They also learn how to create art in various mediums, from basic drawing to watercolors, animation, multimedia and video.
"One of the things we try to teach in class is if you make a mistake, just like in life, you work your way through it," Meier said. "You don’t just give up."
Each year, students also create self-portraits, which helps them visualize their own growth as people and artists.
"The portraits this year just blew me away," Meier said. "I’ll always remember them."
Two Batavia High School students had their work selected this year for the Finger Lakes Art Show, which is juried, so not all pieces submitted are accepted. The students were Angie Macconi and Melissa Mountain.
"It’s important at all grade levels (that) we talk about art, we write about art, we critique and encourage communication," Meier said. "We try to keep to the positive. I would rather hear from a child, ‘I like this one best because,’ and then give me a reason, and say it in a way, ‘I like how the artist used line in this one,' 'that it curls and swoops through the picture and leads your eye through’ rather than, ‘it’s pretty.’ ”
By Cora Beal
By Tyler Budzinak
By Leo Burg
By Sophia Dinehart
