SHOW AND TELL
Visual art teachers from across the province showcase their work at The Guild
Visual art teachers from across the province showcase their work at The Guild
Visual art instructors are practicing what they teach to Island students this month.
The Guild in Charlottetown is exhibiting the work of 11 visual art teachers from Public Schools Branch schools across the province from now until Jan. 23.
The artists are members of the P.E.I. Visual Art Teachers Association (VATA), who put their work on display as a type of professional development exercise and to inspire their students.
“Our whole goal is to encourage people to take art seriously, to keep it in the schools, to speak to the whole idea that art is more than just a subject, it’s a lifestyle,” said event organizer LiliAnne Webster. “This show reflects our passions, our interests.”
The works cover a range of mediums — from woodworking and photography, to paintings and tapestries.
In the true spirit of education, the teachers are also splitting their exhibition time at The Guild with some of their students. Following the VATA showcase, Grade 12 art students fro Colonel Gray and Charlottetown Rural will move into the space from Jan. 24 to Feb. 3.
Vicki AllenCook, an arts education specialist with the Department of Education, said this fulfils a portion of the curriculum that asks students to display their artwork publicly and receive feedback.
“This shows that the teachers know how to mentor each other, and it inspires their own students to know their teachers are actively creating artwork in its different forms,” said AllenCook. “All the students are doing great work, and the teachers are all awesome.”