MAC Ticket to Ride funding
For a handful of years the Maine Arts Commission has provided funding to defray the cost of travel for Maine schools wishing to visit Maine arts based venues and events as part of a well rounded curriculum. Below is information provided by Jeremy Smith who teaches visual art at Maranacook Community High School.
Recently Mr. Smith took my students on a field trip to Colby College Art Museum to view the contemporary sculpture on exhibit there. There were some remarkable works on view by artists such as Maya Lin, Glenn Ligon, Jenny Holzer, Claes Oldenburg, and Louise Nevelson. Also currently on view at Colby were many pieces by renowned Maine artist, Bernard Langlais.
The tour was excellent and the guides were informative and interactive. Students were asked to participate in thoughtful critiques of several works on display. When Mr. Smith’s students returned back to the classroom, they were asked to write hypotheses about the elements of visual communication they experienced while at Colby. Students used a wiki that Mr. Smith created to help them remember the visual narratives from each sculpture. Through their further investigation and discussions, the students collaborated in small groups to analyze one particular work and form opinions about their chosen artist’s intent, social relevance, and message.
Afterwards, Smith’s students turned their work toward creating a narrative sculpture about bees, using personal influences and collaboration. Using found objects to create hive structures and working with aluminum foil, students in Smith’s classes worked to create several collaborative pieces that will be installed into the school’s vegetable garden during the spring of 2015.
Smith was pleased to have his students’ Colby visit funded through the Ticket to Ride program from the Maine Arts Commission which helped provide the opportunity! Thanks also to Colby for their remarkable staff and volunteers!
Wikis have multiple uses and are a great technology tool to utilize in the Arts classroom. To view the one used in Jeremy’s class please click here.
Please Note
At this time, the Maine Arts Commission is unable to fulfill Ticket to Ride funding requests. The Maine Arts Commission expects that additional Ticket to Ride funding will be available in the near future. We recommend visiting this site periodically for an update on funding and possible program modifications.
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