The Acton Boxborough Regional High School (ABRHS) Seniors’ Art Exhibit is installed in The Gallery at West Acton Villageworks through Tuesday, May 19 at 5:30 p.m., The Gallery is open Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.
On Thursday, May 7, the opening reception drew a large crowd of students and community including friends, parents, grandparents, and faculty. Members of the District administration, including Superintendent Light, Director of Finance and Operations Sherri Matthews, and Assistant Superintendent for Teaching and Learning Gabrielle Abrams, all squeezed in a visit just before the night’s School Committee meeting.
While ceramics and woodworking pieces were on display only during this reception, other artwork, including paintings; mixed media; digital art, including animations; and photographs will be on display on the walls of the gallery until the exhibit closes.
As previously reported in the Acton Exchange, springtime is a very busy time for arts events at all levels in the district, with concerts, art shows, and theatrical performances taking place from Acton to Boston to Groton.
George Arsenault, the visual and performing arts director at the ABRHS, oversees an extensive and fully integrated arts program in the core curriculum. Most of the graduating seniors with art on display are studio art students. The school offers three year-long sections of studio art, plus two studio art portfolio courses, I and II, with I being full-year and II being a full-year or a one semester option. For the 26/27 school year, a new AP (Advanced Placement) Art and Design course has been added.
Two members of the high school’s jazz band, an audition-based group, played music throughout the reception. The band performs in concerts and plays for community events.
Ceramics teacher Laurie Burns and studio arts teacher Eliza Greene mingled among students and family members, animatedly discussing the pieces on display and students’ plans for after graduation on Friday, June 5 at Leary Field.
When asked how long the Senior Art Exhibit had been taking place, Burns responded, “Oh, years.”
Lucy Erling, a 9th grade student attending the reception, and her mother, Shelly, talked about details of the Visual Arts Program which they find exciting. Lucy has been creating art since she was very young, and takes advantage of the opportunities for competitions and exhibitions Ms. Greene communicates to her students through the school’s online portal.
Lucy has pieces on display in local art museums. She shared a photo of a piece that was exhibited at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, and another photo of a piece that is currently on exhibit at the Worcester Art Museum. Shelly indicated that her daughter is working on building her portfolio, and is impressed with the addition next year of an AP class in the department.
Alissa Nicol is the Chair of Acton’s Select Board, and writes for the Acton Exchange about events in the community.
