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Students see windows of
inspiration
Photo by Christian
Knight
Design team members (from left) Jessica Weinholt, Anastasia
Mejia, Katie Price, Emily Nelson, Adriana Frasier and Claudia
Von Flotow pose with their design, which was chosen for
installation at this year’s Bite of the Gorge. Twelve clear
vinyl panels will represent windows’ ability to reveal and to
hide things about their owners. All twelve students will work on
the project. |
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By ESTHER K. SMITH
News staff writer
March 15, 2006
Art has always been a big part of the Bite of the Gorge events —
which is appropriate since it is the major fund-raiser for Arts
in Education — but new this year will be a major art project
done by Hood River Valley High School art students.
The 12 students, under the guidance of White Salmon sculptor and
Artist-in-Residence John Mayo, are working together on one
project for the event.
In order to decide on the project, the students formed three
teams, each of which was to come up with a design proposal.
Since this year’s Bite of the Gorge sponsor is Cardinal Glass,
the group first toured the Odell facility with the instruction
to design an art project with the idea of what glass means to
them.
“The objective was to go through the design process,” Mayo said.
“I left it open to them to interpret the art. After the tour,
each team brainstormed and played with words, developed a theme,
then came up with ideas about how to manifest that theme into an
art project.”
Part of the design process is getting the ideas on paper and
making models and illustrations so that other people can see
your vision of the project. Once each team had its project
visualized, it had to get ready to present those ideas to a
panel of jurors who would decide on one of the three designs.
Last week the teams brought their presentations to Cardinal
Glass where Mayo and representatives from Cardinal and Columbia
Gorge Arts in Education would be the design’s judge and jury.
Team 1 was Jack Kennedy and Madison Kyger, who decided that
windows act both as a filter and as a barrier to the outside
world.
“Outside is a world we can’t control,” Kennedy said. “Humans
want control and we have no control over nature.”
Team 2, made up of Anastasia Mejia, Jessica Weinholt, Adriana
Frasier, Katie Price, Emily Nelson and Claudia Von Flotow, came
up with the idea of a window as both a barrier and a protector;
one that reveals things but can also hide things.
“Looking in the windows of a car or a house, you can get a
glimpse of the person but not the whole person,” explained Von
Flotow. “We wanted to convey the idea that a window is like a
portrait of a person. What you put in view of your window is
what you want people to see about you.”
Team 3, Edwin Carrier, Ashley Irwin, Emma Kingrey and Ben Wadman,
thought about how windows serve both as a protection and as a
barrier.
“We wondered, ‘What are we trying to bring in and what are we
trying to keep out?’” Carrier said.
After the presentations, the students were asked to leave the
room while the jury deliberated. Mayo said that in addition to
making a choice, jurors needed to give the students feedback
about their projects.
“This isn’t a critique, but we do want them to get some
feedback,” he said. “This is their first experience with giving
a presentation, so remember to sandwich your critical comments
between positives: ‘I like this — I have a concern about this —
I like this.’”
David Windsor, plant manager of Cardinal Glass, volunteered to
be spokesman when the students came back for the “verdict.”
“Inspirational,” he said. “All three projects are inspirational.
I want to first make a distinction between making a choice and
making a decision. Choice-wise, it was very tough. We had to
consider practical things like ease of transport and
installation, and whether it can be finished in the allotted
time.
“It came down to a decision of the 12 panels (Team 2),” Windsor
said. “You all gave outstanding presentations. What was very
important to me was that this didn’t represent Cardinal Glass —
you took what we do and you went somewhere else with it.” |
