Jefferson High School students create artwork for Ann Arbor adoption agency

An Ann Arbor-based foster care and adoption agency will feature mixed media artwork created by Sarah Carter’s 2-D design class at Jefferson High School.

Eighteen students enrolled in the advanced art class collaborated to create a version of Vincent van Gogh’s “Starry Night.” The Post-Impressionist artist created the oil painting in 1889 using a mix of warm and cool colors.

“The painting is one of their final two projects,” Carter said. “They worked on it at the tail end of last semester. It was part of their final exam.”

Carter was contacted by someone she knows at the Ann Arbor agency, Hands Across The Water, about the possibility of her students creating art for the office. The agency was open to ideas. They were looking for something on a larger scale with a pop of color.

Then, Carter took the idea to her students and they discussed several options.

Carter’s approach to teaching the 2-D design class focuses on problem solving and idea development. For the project, she gave her students, a blend of sophomores, juniors and seniors, free reign when it came to deciding on what media to use. As a class, it was agreed they would use acrylic paints or colored pencils.

The design was first sketched onto drawing paper before being cut into pieces. Each student completed a 6 by 8-inch section using colored pencils or acrylic paint, resulting in a framed, 24 by 36-inch mixed media project. On the back of the piece is the signature of each student.

“So each pane is made of one or the other,” Carter said. “They mapped it out so it wouldn’t be all colored pencils toward the top and all acrylic paint at the bottom. They were careful to make sure each material was spread throughout the project so that it looks balanced.

“We discussed famous artworks or if they wanted to create something. They decided it would be easier to start with an established image rather than to create something of their own. They liked the recognizability of ‘Starry Night’ and discussed why it is so iconic.”

The students researched the Dutch painter and came across one of his quotes, “I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people.”

Carter’s students felt those words were the perfect sentiment for the artwork they were creating for the adoption agency. It gave them inspiration.

The famous painting served as a guide rather than being copied.

“In a lot of ways, this piece is true to the original. They sketched it out so that all the pieces would fit back together before they cut it,” she said. “They sketched it to be very true to the original and I encouraged them to bring some of their own style. I wanted it to look like it was done by multiple people. I wanted to see them reflected in it, too.”

Carter said the colors and sections of the drawing are accurate but stylistically there are differences, like smooth colored pencil drawings compared to thick, dramatic brush strokes found in the original artwork.

“This was a really cool project. I am working with a class that has already taken the prerequisites,” she said. “They have already established their technical skills. It was really cool to see them doing idea development and creative problem solving and, at the end, putting all of that together was really neat.”

The finished artwork is on display in the showcase located outside of the high school’s art room. Plans are being made to have it delivered to the Ann Arbor business where it will be displayed on an office wall.

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Jefferson High School students create artwork for Ann Arbor agency