The after-school art program, offered as an extracurricular activity in the winter season, provides a deadline-free and supportive space for students to explore different mediums, add to their portfolios, or simply relax while exercising their creativity. In line with a shift in the structure of certain academic classes, after-school art will become an IMPACT course in the upcoming winter and spring seasons.
With this new branding, the program will pursue interdisciplinary activities and allow students to engage with the greater Hartford community. As outlined in the KO Course of Study Guide, “In these courses, students are positioned as agents and drivers of their own learning.” Visual Arts Department Chair Katie Burnett, the founder and faculty advisor for the after-school art program, noted the presence of performing arts options but saw a lack of visual-arts offerings for students’ co-curricular activities. Thus, the after-school art program was created with the intention of providing time and access to materials for young artists. “It’s a studio space for students to do the work that they want to do,” she said. “I don’t give assignments. I think students felt the need for this freedom to do what they wanted to do and have a space where they can create.”
This year, students who signed up for the extracurricular can look forward to field trips, visiting artists, and other off-campus activities. “It’s more rigorous than it’s been in the past,” Ms. Burnett said. “We’re going to the JCC gallery, the Wadsworth, Hartford art school galleries, and trips to talk to artists in the area. It’s going to be a mixture of students being able to create their own work and also see all the phenomenal work that’s going on around them.”
Rather than creating assignments for students, Ms. Burnett instead serves as a mentor and offers guidance throughout the course. “I want them to find joy in it. They’re able to create the work that they want to see in the world,” she said. “I want them to form a community together, just like a team, of working together in an artist’s studio and sharing ideas and space and materials. And, with this addition of more time outside the studio, I want them to develop a deeper connection with the community around them.” In addition to being an artistic advisor, Ms. Burnett also describes herself as a fellow artist working alongside the students.
Ultimately, the hope of this IMPACT course is that students will be inspired by the world around them to forge their own creative voice. Although the program began with just five students, it has quickly grown in popularity. Whether students envision a career in visual arts or simply desire time to explore their individual creativity, the after-school art program is a perfect fit for the artistically-inclined.
