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Talents freed
By DONNA WINCHESTER, Times Staff Writer
ST. PETERSBURG -- Lynn Mask recognized the artist in Emily Silvis when the Azalea Elementary School student was in first grade. Suspecting that the child's creativity would blossom with a little guidance, the art teacher encouraged her to experiment with paint and clay. She showed her how to work with colored pencils and began teaching her to appreciate good design. To boost the young artist's self-confidence, Mask began sending Emily's work to the school district's annual art show. She encouraged her through the years to enter other shows, and in August, suggested she enter the Word and Image elementary school student show at the Arts Center. Mask was not surprised that Emily's work was among 155 pieces chosen for the show from more than 350 entries submitted by elementary schools countywide. She was thrilled last week to be able to tell the child, who is now 11, that her entry had earned an award of excellence and that she would be recognized at a reception at the Arts Center when the show opened last Saturday night. "I was walking in the hallway when she told me the good news," Emily said. "I was amazed. I didn't really think I was going to get it because there were so many entries." Now in its sixth year, the show is a partnership between the St. Petersburg gallery and Pinellas County schools. It was the brainchild of district art supervisor Sue Froemming, who wanted to give students an opportunity to create a visual piece with a written explanation. In separate exhibitions for elementary, middle and high school students, the Arts Center staff judges the works on the merits of both. This year's theme, "Let Freedom Ring," drew so many entries in the elementary division that the show was split into two exhibits, curator Amanda Cooper said. The first show opened Nov. 9 and ran until Dec. 31. The second show, which includes work from 14 public and four private schools, will run until Feb. 21. Cooper and her staff were surprised at the personal imagery the children used to interpret the theme. Some employed traditional symbols such as the American flag, the Statue of Liberty and the American bald eagle, but many took a different approach. Students at Belleair Elementary School expressed their freedom to choose careers. Christina Paul painted a self-portrait and wrote about her dream of becoming an artist. "In some countries, you can't just pick your career," the fifth-grader said in her statement. William Parmenter, also a fifth-grader, created a self-portrait and wrote that freedom means going to college and having the chance to become a police officer. Third-grader Katy Corona included a large brown dog in her self-portrait and wrote that freedom means the opportunity to become a veterinarian. Some children approached the theme seriously. Shayna Hartman, a fifth-grader at Plumb Elementary, spelled out "Freedom" in large red, white and blue block letters filled in with stars and stripes. Her essay mentioned civil rights activists Rosa Parks and Ruby Bridges. Pat Tacy, a Belleair Elementary third-grader, used construction paper to create the image of a man holding a sign that said, "I voted." In his essay, he said the right to vote is the freedom he holds dearest. Danielle Falcone, a fourth-grader at Anona Elementary, attached this statement to her self-portrait: "My skin is white, but it does not mean I can't have friends that have the color of black skin." Children at Azalea Elementary School took a more playful approach. Fifth-grader Lizzy Courcelle drew a swimming pool filled to the brim with blue water and wrote that swimming makes her feel free. Ethan Jover, a third-grader, created a mixed-media portrait of a smiling boy. "I feel free when I ride my skateboard," he wrote. And fifth-grader Theo Eitel used red, white and blue crayons to draw a boy about to slam-dunk a basketball. "Freedom is playing basketball with my friends every day," he wrote. Mary Stenov, who teaches art at the Canterbury School in St. Petersburg, had a brainstorming session with her students before they created their artwork. They talked about bright and dull colors and the interplay of whites, grays, blacks and primary colors to create a mood. "They were very excited about it," she said. "They liked the idea of a theme. They wondered, 'How can we represent America through paint?' 'How can we make a statement to people?' 'How can we use symbols to represent things?' " They decided to incorporate paint and sculpture to create three-dimensional works. Five of the pieces earned space at the exhibition, and Andy Cressman's cut-paper collage of the American flag won an award of excellence. In his essay, the third-grader wrote: "I agree with Martin Luther King Jr. that you should not be judged by the color of your skin but by the content of your character." Stenov, who thinks art is meant to be displayed, continually encourages her students to take their work out of their pockets and backpacks and show it to people. "The Word and Image show gave the children a chance to discover that all forms of communication are important and basically intertwined," she said. "They also got to see their work as valuable." Like Stenov, Azalea Elementary's Mask took the opportunity to teach art concepts. She talked about color theory with her third-graders and introduced the fourth-graders to gesture drawing. She encouraged the fifth-graders to experiment with various media such as oil pastels and felt-tip pens. One of her goals was to impress upon them that creating artwork is about more than being creative. Contrary to popular belief, she said, making good art takes a lot of thought. "I would never dream of walking into my classroom and saying, 'Here are some markers. Be creative.' That's not how you're going to get successful art," she said. "There are principles and elements of successful design. It takes a lot of time." If you goPart 2 of the Word and Image elementary school student show will be on display at the Arts Center, 719 Central Ave., through Feb. 21. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free. Who they areThe visual and written work of these Pinellas County students will be on display: Anona Elementary: Mariah Curry, Rachael Jones, Danielle Falcone, Jacob Davis, Ciara Siim Azalea Elementary: Alexia Perry, Bethany Wagner, Lindsey Neth, Bhavani Patel, Emily Silvis, Alexa Varbel, Theodore Banks, Mary Nicole Wilkinson, Ethan Jover, Alexis Brown, Ashley Smith, Lizzie Courcelle, Fontini Gogas, Theo Eitel Bardmoor Elementary: Marneisha Harper, Ben Browning, Alexis Pelose Belleair Elementary: Ashly Isaacson, Danielle Jordan, Susan Stone, Ashley Rossi, Alyssa Long, Amanda Kohl, Angelica Toston, William Parmenter, Christina Paul, Jamie Wiegand, Shayla Cram, Kevin Skeeto, Matthew Klein, Jonathan Duff, Katy Corona, Deanna Weeks, Roccio Acosta, Crystal Acosta, Pat Tacey, Shakarah Herron, Marissa Wiggins Canterbury School: Merina Meana, Emily Winesett, Elizabeth McGuinness, Andy Cressman, Haleigh Reddick Cross Bayou Elementary: Marija Preradovic Eisenhower Elementary: Gabrielle Velazquez, Norina Elias, Alexandra Oliva Gulf Beaches Elementary: Michelle Scannell, Allysa Morgan Keswick Christian: Collin Feinberg, Danielle Byrd, Lauren Muscarella, Amber Henter, Savannah Venier, Danielle Grace Lynch Elementary: Arica Ames Maximo Elementary: Hila Ghorzang Our Lady of Lourdes: Brynne Whitacre, Tricia Sacks, Maria Lovera, Olivia Kellin, Sarah Solis, Gloria Solis Pinellas Park Elementary: Amelia Shuba, Alyssa Kubisak Plumb Elementary: Matt Natereli, Shayna Hartman, Alex Centeno, Grace Senatre Starkey Elementary: Danielle DiGrazia, Anjessica Bentley, Sebastian Ackroyd Sunflower Private School: Shanti Abel
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