On September 13, Mount Madonna School (MMS) fifth and ninth grade students participated in creating a communal artwork called “The Pyramids,” a large-scale sculptural sand installation guided by father-son artist team of Jim and Brighton Denevan at Cowell Beach in Santa Cruz. The event was organized by the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History as part of their CommonGround programming that showcases art in the outdoors and other unusual spaces. These two buddy classes were accompanied by teachers Angela Willetts and Jessica Cambell.
“Often, students hold fast to the belief that art is a product, produced by a single artist who is imbued with a special talent – the myth of the ‘artistic genius’,” commented Willetts. “In the art room I so often hear, ‘I’m not an artist’ or ‘I’m not good at art’ as an apology for the ‘product’ they have made.
“Over the last few years, I have built into the art curriculum a focused emphasis on developing artistic behaviors and studio thinking skills. This includes skills such as collaboration, reflection, flexibility, experimentation, taking risks and persistence. The aim is to shift thinking away from products and more toward process. These are artist skills that are transferable to so many other areas of life and learning. In that endeavor, I create opportunities for students to engage with art-making that doesn’t fit the usual mold, much as the museum’s CommonGround program tries to expand people’s understanding of what art is and where it lives.”
In making “The Pyramids,” students were able to practice working together toward a common goal, solving problems together, working with non-traditional materials and creating art whose purpose is to bring people together in community. The artwork was built over three days, and will disappear slowly as the tide comes in – a reminder of the change and transformation inherent in nature.
The finished artwork can be seen in this video from the artists’ Instagram page.
“The Denevans use their sand art to bring awareness to the protection of the ocean and the marine habitat,” noted Cambell. “It was neat for our students to participate with other activists, just to see that there are many different ways to get your message across and raise awareness to the issues that you care about.
“As well, it was really very nice to see the ninth graders interact with the fifth graders,” she continued. “Their buddy connections were very sweet and watching them help the artist build the sand art together, or engage in the mini beach cleanup together as part of the field trip really solidified why there is so much value in the MMS buddy program of mentorship across the grades and building a strong school community.”
The field trip included a visit to the nearby Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Exploration Center to participate in a marine debris program.
“At the Center students had a very in-depth conversation with the docent about actions that humans take that affect the marine sanctuary and the life in the sanctuary,” said Cambell. “It really ignited fifth graders’ discussions as to what they want their in-depth class environmental topic to be this year.”
Stewardship and a focus on environmental education are foundational aspects of Mount Madonna School’s preschool through grade 12 curriculum.
