A Closer Look: The STHS Festival of the Arts

Inspiring Younger Generations

The STHS Festival of the Arts impacts many—artists’ families, teachers, fellow students, and of course, the artists themselves. However, one of the arguably most important effects the art show has is on the Enfield and Erdenheim students that visited the high school to see the work on display.

Introducing young children to the arts is very important. While viewing the artwork, students gain a better understanding of themselves, the world, respect, empathy, focus, and higher-order thinking.

Avery O. of Mrs. Yoder’s third-grade class said, “The artwork inspired me because there were many pieces of art I had never seen before. I could tell the students really put thought and effort into their work.” 

Mrs. DeKerillis’ second-grade class said that “the show was mesmerizing.”  While they looked at the art, one student commented that he “felt like they were in a whole different world.” All of the students appreciated the creativity of the older students and the fact that the art included paintings, as well as sculpture, glasswork, pottery, photography, and much more.

Not only did the younger students visiting the art show benefit the Enfield and Erdenheim students, but they also left sweet drawings and notes for their favorite pieces, bringing smiles to the artists’ faces. The kids drew their favorite piece and an enthusiastic note about why they liked it best.

Continuing the tradition of bringing younger students up to see the high school art show should always remain a priority in the future due to the developmental benefits and, of course, the smiles brought to older students’ faces when they see the curious young faces gawking at the art.

Past, Present, and Future of the STHS Festival of the Arts

In the past, the STHS Festival of the Arts was originally a small occasion—student artwork was put on display in the room that is now Mrs. Greenawalt’s. Art classes would stop working on projects for a week to get it set up, and families would come into the room to see the pieces.

When Mr. Kobasz—known by all students as Mark—joined the school, he brought the art show to a whole new level. The show was moved out from the small room to main areas in the high school.  At his wife’s suggestion, jurors were brought in to award outstanding pieces in every category (fibers, glass, printmaking, ceramics, and more). 

One award that is particularly notable is the Myra Plumridge Award. Myra Plumridge was an art teacher along with Mark. They originally worked together in the middle school, and then worked together here in the high school. When she passed away, many people donated money in her name. Now, every year, the three art teachers work together to pick a piece of art that is especially outstanding, and the winner gets a $500 prize. This year, the award went to Norah Swartz for her structure made of ceramic, glass, and wood. 

The art show is a significantly meaningful time of year for everyone, including the art teachers. Teachers and students put tons of dedication into creating a wonderful display of the art. Many weeks prior to the show, they set up all the pedestals, print out the artists’ names, and choose the work to be displayed. A week before the show, they set up all the walls, and then students and teachers work to paint and stage the art on the walls before the show’s official opening. 

A Beloved Teacher Retires

Mark has done so much to build the show up to its current glory, but, unfortunately, he is retiring at the end of this year. His leaving will be a loss to the school, but he will always be remembered for bringing the art show to its full potential. Mark’s perspective on the art show is that it is “a manifestation of nine months of amazing energy, talent, brainstorming, mistakes, failures, successes, inventive thinking, cooperative art making, passion, love…” and much more. 

The Art Show is brought to life by the collaboration of students, teachers, and families. After months upon months of work and thousands of used supplies, the art is displayed for all to appreciate and admire. The show unites our community by capturing the spirit of our school and our students through beautiful art. At its core, the art show in and of itself is truly a work of art.

Click HERE to view Elementary students’ messages to the High School artists.

Spotlight: The Box

The art show was filled with beautiful art in all forms, from paintings to pictures to glass to ceramics. But one certain form of creativity stood out to almost every student as they passed it. “The Box,” created by Sam Bleeker. 

Many people have noticed the construction of “The Box,” which started in late January/early February. Long before the walls of the art show were being put up, a mysterious box was being built in the corner of the main lobby. What many people didn’t know was that it was going to become a stunning creation full of mirrors.

Sam’s original inspiration for the box was from her friend, who told her “about the concepts of when mirrors bounce off each other and you can see, as it goes further and further in, it turns green.”  Sam’s AP portfolio is based on mirrors and perception, so this mirror concept was perfect for a project.  Sam’s original thought was to make a painting of mirrors, but Mark had the idea to use real mirrors. “The Box” is constructed of plywood and painted a dark blue, with explosions of lighter blue shades painted all over it. On the inside, it is filled with pieces of mirrors, allowing the person inside to see them self from many different angles.

Now that the art show is over, though, “The Box” has to go somewhere. Unfortunately, it has to be taken down. Sam, however, plans to use the pieces of the box and create new forms of it. She might even repurpose the plywood and mirrors to create smaller versions to sell.