Thirteen budding young artists, under the direction of art teachers Ms. Weigand (Middle School) and Ms. Stoos (Upper School), competed in the Providence Rotary’s annual Street Painting Festival at the Alex and Ani Skating Rink in Providence. The theme which each group sought to depict was “Be A Gift to the World.” In art class the students sketched out a design and then transferred it to scale onto large squares cordoned off at the rink and brought them to life using bright sidewalk chalk.
Amy Weigand noted that the Middle School square depicted multi-colored hands extended out to a globe enwrapped in a heart with the sunrise in the background. “The different color hands are symbolic of the personal gifts and talents we each possess. They are coming together in two waves (a nod to the ocean state) to create a heart. Inside the heart is the earth. Our gifts are then washing over the earth, transferring our gifts to the world,” she explained.
Dario and Ariana Aytac, Annica and Ayanna Rowe, and Naylea Hernandez from the Middle School worked on the piece. The Middle School’s design won 2nd place in its category and took 1st place in 2013 and 2nd in 2012.
Kelly Stoos, Upper School art teacher, says of their drawing, “The students wanted to use an image of an elephant and flowers to symbolize nature and the need to conserve ecosystems.”
The Upper School artists were Kelly Saldana, Emily Cabreja, Wenricka Griffith, Ruben Vasquez, Valeri Lorenzo, Jurenys Rincon, Ariel Troncoso, and Hilary Jerez.
Through the generosity of sponsors Residential Properties and Board Member, Jean Patiky, Paul Cuffee art students joined in the colorful event. Sponsorship funds are used to support Providence Rotary Charities which are devoted to spreading literacy and educational opportunities to the under-served in Providence.