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Exploring the arts through a resident on campus
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ART can be taught in many ways and in many forms. One such way is through inviting experts from the community to “reside” on campus for a number of weeks.
The Art Department at Shanghai Community International School’s Pudong campus has been host to a very special visiting artist, Brian Michael Reed, during the first quarter. He is an internationally exhibited conceptual artist based in New York City. Brian’s recent exhibitions with the Himalayas Museum and the Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts feature his new work based on his experiences in China.
With an artist in resident, students have the unique experience to work directly with a “real-life” artist. Students collaborated with Brian on a conceptual installation artwork titled, “What Does the Lotus Mean to Me?” The project asked students to consider the lotus in all its forms, making connections to its cultural, historical and spiritual contexts. The students researched the lotus in Chinese culture, and then each student chose a word or phrase to define the lotus meaning. They found the Chinese characters for their chosen word or phrase, and used colored ink to write the words on small pieces of rice paper. Students learned how to apply gold or silver leaf foil to the top surface, transforming the homely brown pods into shimmering forms.
Each student’s pod will find a resting place inside a circular case that isolates and highlights the pod, creating a display that commands a degree of reverence when placed in grid a pattern on the gallery wall. This will become a permanent display on campus, to be enjoyed for many years to come.
Student comments about their direct exposure to Brian’s ideas and process have been positive. Through this opportunity, students learned first-hand how they can find meaning in their everyday life, enriching their experience and understanding of the world. The arts celebrate multiple perspectives, teaching students that problems can have more than one solution. Students learn that knowledge comes through what can’t be said, in images and materials around them.
Chandler Dayton is a teacher of High School and IB Diploma Visual Arts of SCIS Pudong Upper School.
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