Slocan Valley Schools: building
By Nelson Daily Staff
For the last five months students of Slocan Valley schools have been creating blocks.
Not just any blocks, mind you, but creations that represent their identity, their family ancestry and what makes their community school and where they live special.
On the afternoon of Wednesday, June 1 at the Slocan Park Hall Field, some students from each of the Slocan Valley Schools will be involved in a block building project, forming the final stage of a unique valley wide Artstarts project.
Artist Natasha Smith spent time with students at Brent Kennedy, Winlaw and WE Graham schools as their artist in residence.
Teaming with teachers at each school, Smith investigated aspects of social studies curriculum through various art techniques, facilitating the creation of self-portraits, the designing of their initials, age, painting of flags/symbols and the creation of collages for each side of a simple wooden block.
Each part of the process of the blocks creation has been photographed and will be part of a documentary book that is being designed by two Mount Sentinel students.
Each student at the end of the project can choose to keep their block or donate it to their school for future children to hold and wonder about.
On June 1 the culmination of over 350 blocks created by students from each of the three schools should be quite impressive, as students build and collaborate in the last outdoor installation of all the blocks.
It is a project that celebrates identity, diversity and the collaboration of the youngest people in this community, each block representing a precious young creative mind that is living and growing in the Slocan Valley.
People can join in on June 1 of the celebration of the creative spirit that is alive and well in the Slocan Valley.
For more information contact Natasha Smith at 226-6878.
