Anchorage Daily News

ADVANCING THE ARTS, the 35th annual Anchorage School District Student art exhibition, will remain on display through April 6 in the Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center, 121 W. Seventh Ave.

Hundreds of people attended what must have been the biggest opening reception for any show at the Anchorage Museum this year on March 19. A big retrospective for a big-name Alaska artist? A traveling exhibit of works by some internationally famous master? The unveiling of a major project pulled together with massive grants and resources of a giant out-of-state institution?

No. This throng -- so numerous it was hard to turn around in some of the galleries -- turned out to admire the imagination and talent of local children and teens on display in the exhibit "Advancing the Arts." Though this year's edition of the annual show of work by Anchorage students went on display earlier in the month, the March 19 party was the official cheese-and-crackers "grand opening."

On one hand, the reception was clearly a family affair. Parents posed beaming youngsters in front of their contributions to the show -- hanging on the walls of a real museum! -- for photos.

The show will remain on display through April 6. Even people without a relative's name on the wall can find much to savor in this feast of drawings, paintings, ceramics, metalwork, sculpture and mixed-media art celebrating the creativity of local youth.

An elegant formation of Canada geese hung across the southeast gallery, where pieces by elementary students are displayed, sweeps the visitor into a planet of unfettered, unconcealed emotion and imagination. A mysterious bird mask guarding the entry to the northwest gallery, where work by secondary school students is arrayed, seems to suggest the mix of flamboyance and intentional mystery that often defines the teenage zeitgeist.

To be candid, many of the pieces would seem to be more at home at home, stuck to a refrigerator. But others are striking in their liveliness, originality and execution. Some are experimental, some straightforward landscapes. Several pay homage -- generally credited -- to models including Van Gogh, O'Keefe, Klee, Calder and Alvin Amason. A few seem to step into territory yet untrod.

The whole, however, is a delight to stroll through. We asked former Anchorage School District art teacher Don Decker to give us his thoughts.

-- Mike Dunham

Arts and Entertainment Editor

The Anchorage School District is showing off the art of students in its 35th annual exhibition, this year titled "Advancing the Arts," at the Anchorage Museum. It is an extensive and varied assemblage of techniques and materials.

The show is split into two galleries, one for art from elementary schools and the other, beyond the cafe area, for secondary grades.

The elementary section, particularly, is a wonderful installation of color and design. Hundreds of works of art have been meticulously arranged for maximum effect. The pieces transform the high gallery space into a joyous, colorful and exciting realm.

I particularly liked "It's All in the Eyes," a grouping of black/white/gray designs by the sixth-grade students at Fairview Elementary. Art teacher Sharon Trager motivated the students by showing them the work of artist Romare Bearden.

The work of secondary students is more focused on individual pieces. Most art forms are represented, except video. I especially liked the print "Rose of Thorns" by Raphael Clemente of Hanshew Middle School.

I'm not a proponent of copying the photographs of others, though I know appropriation is accepted. Over-reliance on photographs can become a crutch. Many of the images in the secondary-school show are far too recognizable as copies.

It's good that parents attend to see their children's work -- to recognize their efforts and encourage them. It's an opportunity for us all to remind ourselves of the value of visual arts in the lives of our children and the community. It is, as well, a chance to assess the quality of arts education offered in our public schools.

I spent the past 44 years directly involved in education, 19 of them in Anchorage public schools. I can tell you that teachers encounter an array of criticism and pressures. It's tough to get energy or support from outside the classroom, hard to stay focused and positive.

Often, art teachers are evaluated or criticized by people who do not understand or appreciate the importance of the arts in the lives of students or culture to a community. The continual concentration on "basics" and testing have robbed many students of opportunities to create.

Art educators face constant challenges for funding. In efforts to rationalize art in schools, programs have been instituted and grants awarded to "integrate" art with other subject areas, as if the goal of the arts is merely to supplement history or science. Likewise, policies have been implemented to somehow quantify progress in the arts, as though personal expression is somehow measurable.

But, it's not really about how the arts can improve the test scores in other disciplines. It's not about measuring someone's definition of artistic success. Sometimes a rose should just be a rose.

It's not about making professional artists or performers out of the students, and it's not strictly about producing artifacts. Students should be free to invent, explore and experiment -- to do art for art's sake.

Arts in education is not about coloring contests, ribbons or finished products for display. Children can be taught skills and the uses of materials. They can be exposed to the great works of art from the past. They can be shown the best ways to use tools and materials.

The annual exhibits at the Anchorage Museum show that those goals are being met for many students.

We don't want to revert to cookie-cutter pedagogy in which all students make the same thing in the same way. Such product-driven assignments stymie individual expression and growth. Copy exercises and color-book approaches have long been discredited.

The beauty of the Anchorage exhibition lies in its individuality and diversity. The appeal of children's art lies in its innocence and purity -- the evidence of unspoiled joy and freedom recorded on a surface or in three dimensions.

Every child is capable of creating art that is unique and personal. A child's rendering is as individual as her handwriting or fingerprints. When a kid picks up a pencil to draw, she has in her hand the means to express, with extraordinary power, what is in her heart. Whether others accept her expression is not relevant. Whether her work is appreciated or understood by others is not the point. What is important is providing the materials, the time and the guidance to let kids create.

We should demonstrate, through our commitment and priorities, that the arts are important. And in so doing, we should leave no child behind.

Don Decker is an artist, teacher and writer.

YOUTH ART COMPETITION Arts in the Park will showcase work by artists ages 6 to 18, with prizes for three artists in each of three age categories. Entry deadline is May 23. For more information, call Camp Fire USA Alaska Council at 279-3551 or go to

www.campfireak.org

ADVERTISEMENT