On Friday, November 22, Hawthorn Art students from Grades 9-12 accepted the invitation to attend the CIS (Conference of Independent Schools) Visual Arts Festival, held at the magnificent McMichael Canadian Art Collection in Kleinburg. This festival offers senior visual-arts students an opportunity to discover and talk about art, showcase and produce art, and participate in workshops run by top industry and art professionals. This year, the festival’s theme is “How did we get here? Art, Identity and the Human Experience”.
Our young artists were surrounded by plenty of inspiration to fuel their creativity and discover innovative ways to channel their passion. The day included a gallery tour using McMichael’s rich and diverse art holdings, exploring art as an expression of personal experience and examining various cultural narratives of the past and present.
Students also participated in an art-making studio with acclaimed Canadian artist Donald Chrétien, an Ojibwe artist, designer and educator who led a creative activity exploring colour theory and patterns found in nature. Finally, there was an exhilarating “Interactive Art Battle”, unleashing artists’ competitive spirit as they were challenged to think on their feet and express their creativity under pressure.
Special kudos go out to one of our Gr. 9 students, Hailey, who rose to the challenge of submitting a design for the chance to have her artwork featured on the back of the CISVAF 2024 merch, including hoodies, sweatshirts, t-shirts, and totes. Concluding her artist’s statement of her process, Hailey wrote,“I thoroughly enjoyed creating this design for CIS, as it allowed me to blend creativity with meaningful symbolism. Bringing together the themes of art, identity, and the human experience into one cohesive logo was both a rewarding and inspiring process. I loved experimenting with the wave, leaf-like elements, and cityscape to reflect growth, balance, and connection, while capturing the values of independent schools!” Well done, Hailey!
Hawthorn Art students and faculty thank CISVAF organizers, artist Donald Chrétien, and everyone at the McMichael gallery for providing a great way to spark new perspectives and art-making techniques to bring back to class. We loved our day!