Adventures in Art

Students visit art museums to gain exposure

Art+Foundations+II+students+viewing+Carlos+Villa%3A+Retrospective+at+the+Asian+Art+Museum.+The+Asian+Art+Museum+is+a+frequently+visited+museum+by+students+of+Convent+%26+Stuart+Hall+because+of+its+proximity+to+the+Pine-Octavia+campus.+%0A

Julie Martin

Art Foundations II students viewing Carlos Villa: Retrospective at the Asian Art Museum. The Asian Art Museum is a frequently visited museum by students of Convent & Stuart Hall because of its proximity to the Pine-Octavia campus.

Grace Warner, Reporter

Sophomore, junior, and senior Visual Art students have been using class time to visit art museums and galleries in person. 

Following the effects of COVID-19, the art program had been confined to the screen or classroom. However, now students are able to visit galleries and museums alongside teachers and experts, according to senior Ella Woods.

“It has been really cool to be able to visit art galleries in person,” said Woods. “Because we were behind our computer screens or in a classroom for so long, it was pretty difficult to visualize the art we were learning about in class,”

COVID-19 put a lot of stress on the Visual Arts program because of distance learning and the intangibility of the experience, according to sophomore Ava Valentino. The trips to galleries and museums help students to get a visual representation of the lessons they learn in class.

“It’s been really fun going to the galleries with my friends and seeing the art first hand,” said Valentino. “Everyone has really enjoyed the trips and learned a lot from the art,”

Junior students in IB SL Art will take a trip tomorrow to Haines Gallery in Fort Mason. There, they will look at works by Angelo Filomeno, Won Ju Lim, Aili Schmeltz, David Simpson, Robert Stone and Lena Wolff.

Through the artists’ diverse selection of media and practices, students will learn to address real-world concerns through their art, according to an email sent by Visual Arts teacher Julie Martin on Oct. 17 detailing the trip.

“I’m really excited to visit the gallery,” junior Samantha Jackson said. “I hope seeing new art will push me to use the new styles of art I experience in class,”

The Marshall Gallery reported a study about visits to the art gallery in a classroom setting and said that the visits can increase levels of creativity and intelligence. 

“Students have been more inspired after looking at works of art in person,” said Woods. “It helps them to really understand and learn from past works of art, as well as employing tactics they see in the art they’re exposed to.”