Three years ago, when Rivka Schaffner came to
Yosemite High School, she dreamed of making a
"football field for artists." This would be a place where
students could showcase their works where all students could see them,
appreciate their beauty and the work that went into them.
It was a three-year process trying to get the project
on its feet and approved, but Schaffner prevailed. Last fall, work began on the
gallery, which is housed in what used to be the school's cafeteria. With
Schaffner as supervisor and advisor, two students, Kara Bolding and Sabrina
Coulombe, used the creation of the gallery as their senior project. The
building of it as a whole fell on the art club and the art department.
On opening
night, January 26, the gallery contained between 700 and 800 pieces of art,
including sculptures, paintings, poetry, photography, videography, handmade
jewelry and more.
Schaffner and
the students who put the gallery together say that their gallery is the only
professional art gallery in the mountains put together for students by
students.
"A labor of love," Schaffner comments.
The floor is painted artistically and the backgrounds
for the sculpted pots and cups as well as the paintings are all a flat black,
so that the colors stand out more vibrantly and untouched. Inside, there is a
guest book for each new visitor to sign.
Instead of having the name of the piece on the art,
there is simply a number which is coordinated with a book that contains the
name of the piece, the artist and the price, depending on whether the piece is
for sale or not. Many of the pieces on display are for sale.
It will eventually serve as a place where welding
projects as well as wood projects will be shown. Any and all creations are
displayed inside, including student music, drama videos and Environmental and
Spatial Technology (EAST) projects.
Essentially, the gallery houses the collective
creativeness of Yosemite High School and students from the mountain area as a
whole as Schaffner and her assistants are urging elementary schools to show
their works in the spare room.