May 4th and 5th, the high school housed the district’s annual fine arts showcase, a showcase of all of Mayfield’s art programs. This year, the art teachers decided to also include the music programs such as band or choir. While the showcase had been an annual community event, as a result of Covid precautions, from 2020 to 2023, art was featured electronically only.
All around the high school building, stands were set up showcasing art from Lander, Center, Gates Mills, Millridge, Mayfield Middle School, and Mayfield High School. It displayed pictures from photography students, painting (watercolor, oil paint, acrylic), digital art, and various other mediums. In the library were art student’s 3D projects, such as ceramic vases, plates, cardboard dioramas, and comics.
During intermission. between the music student’s performances, Kasey Gerome, a performing arts student at the high school, sang the Taylor Swift songs “Lover” and “Heartbreak” set.
Further along, in the cafeteria, activities were also set up for intermission. These included coloring sheets of student’s art, build-your-own magnet sets, a scavenger hunt, and a poster anonymously asking what music and art meant to the attendees.
Some comments on the “Art is…” page included, “In the way you talk, the way you dress, everything you believe in and more”, “Expression”, and “The way you free your soul.” Some comments on the “Music is…” page were, “Pretty much my whole life”, “How I express myself”, and “The window to a soul”.
Attendees were also asked personally why they thought fine arts programs were important to schools. Olivia Krupa, MMS student, says that fine arts in schools is important because it gives students a creative outlet; “It helps fuel kid’s creative desires.”
Another attendee said that the finer arts gave children a place to feel comfortable in schools. They also said that it was important because it let students express themselves creatively.
MMS art teacher Mrs. Vokic talked about how we tend to focus on academic or athletic intelligence, but artistic intelligence is sometimes overlooked. “There’s so much in the world that requires creative problem solving and craftsmanship; art is all about that.”
Mrs. Sabree, the choir teacher at MMS, said that art shows the human experience. “So much of what we learn in school is important to general knowledge, but visual art and performing arts help show our emotion in different ways and how people experience the world.” She said it also shows how it can give something to students who may struggle in other aspects of school, and give them an anchor.
The showcase. according to Mrs. Vokic, took lots of work from all of the fine arts teachers–band, choir, and visual arts–and the students to create or learn pieces to showcase the school’s talent. “[There was] a lot of behind the scenes work put into it.”
Mrs. Sabree said that when the idea of adding music students to the showcase was proposed at the end of last year, she made sure to pick music that not only the students would enjoy, but the audience as well.
In short, it took a lot for the art students and teachers to put together pieces for this once-a-year event showcasing how important the arts mean to these students, and it was certainly nothing to miss.
