As Alaska Arts Education month comes to a close in March, student artists and district educators are preparing for the annual Festival of the Arts to be held throughout April at Suurvik Cinema.
Julie McWilliams coordinates the Festival, which she calls a “celebration of student learning throughout the district.”
Through April 1: staff from around the district may submit student art by creating a tag in this format and sending it to McWilliams at the district office. Starting April 2, the art gallery will be open anytime the Suurvik theater is open in the upstairs foyer.
“It’s beautiful that we get that recognition from the governor,” McWilliams said about the new proclamation that March be deemed Alaska Arts Education Month.
“Art touches every area of a person’s life - from the clothes you put on in the morning, to the colors you paint your house. Art touches everything, but people tend to overlook it,” she said.
Preparing for the Festival is the perfect way the district can celebrate Arts Education Month, though McWilliams encourages educators to prioritize it throughout the year.
“Many people don’t realize that arts foster creative thinking, problem solving skills, and they do have a bigger role in education programming, but they don’t always get featured in that way,” she said.
For the Festival, McWilliams aims to create an art gallery-like experience for students and members of the community, and says she tries to create a beautiful aesthetic.
“I want to honor the work that students put into their projects,” she said.
McWilliams says she believes creating artwork can open up a world to students where they can communicate their feelings, thoughts or opinions through new avenues. Though she won’t be able to be in the theater all the time the gallery is available, she has one key tip for students and families that visit the Festival, and that is to ask themself one question as they view each piece:
“What was this artist trying to tell us in this artwork?”
Students and staff are encouraged to submit artwork through Friday, April 1. Members of the community are invited to visit Suurvik Cinema throughout April to view - and consider the greater intention - of the array of student projects on hand.
