Above: At the Exeter-Milligan Family Art night one of the first
stops in the gym was the Timberwolf collage station. Clockwise around the
table starting at the left are Melanie Schluter, Kaylie Schlueter, Adrien
Mueller and Shelli Mueller.
Above: Hannah Petersen gets her face painted by Kayla Bonds at the
Exeter-Milligan Family Art Night.
Below: Axle Erdkamp shows off his creation.
Above: Scout Grummons gets all dressed up for the photo
booth at the Exeter-Milligan Family Art Night.Below: Broc Mueller provided extra entertainment as a fun ride during the Family Art Night.
Above: The Exeter-Milligan gym was full of people of all ages
for the Exeter-Milligan Family Art Night.
Below: Exeter-Milligan Art teacher Lisa Kanode (with daughter
Chesney on her lap) works with Joleen Vossler at the origami station.
The Exeter-Milligan Gym was filled with art enthusiasts on
Thursday, March 26. The Exeter-Milligan art department held their first
ever Family Art Night under the direction of art teacher Lisa Kanode.
There were over eight stations filled with opportunities for
attendees to get involved in art. They included a collage Timberwolf, an
origami station, a fun photo booth with props, face painting, a creative
sculpture stop, a printing station and a spot to work with pastels.
Kanode was introduced to the idea of Family Art Night in her
first year of teaching in Sidney, “They had an Annual Art show that they did
and as their elementary art teacher I kept with the tradition as well as added
my own ideas to it.”
This year the program was held entirely with art room supplies
that Kanode found in the room when she inherited it. The face paint was a
new purchase but everything else that was used was part of the department.
Kanode enlisted the help of her high school art
students. About half of her students were involved in running the
stations. “We spent about a week and a half during class time to prepare
for it, so I tried to build the excitement and encouraged them to help.”
She was very appreciate of the extra adult helpers she was
able to recruit, Melanie Papik and Melanie Schlueter. Some of her
students, like Brianna Beatham, put in lots of extra time to make the event
successful. Making the photo booth extra fun with some of their own items
were Hannah and Savannah Horne.
The turnout and response to the event was very
positive. After reviewing the attendees Kanode found that most of the
elementary classes had 75 percent attendance with just a few classes closer to
50 percent, “I was a little surprised at the age range, but I think we
advertised well and built some excitement for the older kids to participate as
well as the younger ones.”
In addition to the multiple stations where students could
create art, displayed around the gym were the current art projects of the elementary
students. Students were able to show their parents their current art work
in an art show atmosphere.
Kanode is looking toward the future, “I definitely plan to
make this an annual event. I feel it gives our youth a chance to take
ownership in their artwork as well as a way for families to explore their
creative side which builds character. I also want to raise awareness for
the importance of art in our community and world, not just for the artist but
for every person in all professions.”
