Daily Reporter staff reports
“Teachers as Artists,” an annual exhibit, opens Wednesday at the Creative Arts and Event Center in the Creative Arts Gallery at 2 W. Main St.
Sandy Hall, a retired 32-year Greenfield-Central art teacher, conceived the idea for the Teachers as Artists exhibit after attending the St. Mary’s Retreat for art teachers sponsored by the Art Education Association of Indiana.
During the retreat, she said she saw tremendous work coming out of the workshop from the art teachers who were attending. She found herself wondering what she could do to continue that momentum and let people know that art teachers also make art of their own. She decided to create her own local event, “Teachers as Artists.”
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As arguably some of the busiest people on earth, teachers tend to get caught up in the day-to-day business of teaching, which often leaves time for little else, Hall said.
The program seeks to reverse that trend.
“It’s a professional development pursuit,” Hall said. “Participating in something like this empowers teachers. We need to remind ourselves that making art should be a priority.”
This is the fifth year for the event. More than 18 applicants from as far away as Valparaiso and Floyds Knobs have submitted. Four teacher-artists from Hancock County will be displaying work in the show: Barbara Andrews, a retired teacher from New Palestine High School; Clyde Gaw and Nicole Gardner, who are both currently teaching art at New Palestein; and Hall, herself, has a couple of pieces in the show but adds that they will not be judged.
The show will be judged by Indiana artists Duane King, a sculpture and director of Southport Arts; and Donna Short, a pastels and oil artist and past best of show winner at Greenfield’s Will Vawter Art Competition. Both artists will have pieces in the show, but they will not be included in the judging.
The judging will take place Tuesday, with more than $200 of prize money for the winners, with the exhibit opening Wednesday. A special reception, which is open to the public, will be 6 to 9 p.m. March 13. Artists will be on hand to discuss their work, and some art will be for sale.
For more information about this exhibit, which runs through April 24, contact Sandy Hall at 317-507-4617 or [email protected].
