Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties

Downtown Art Place hosts annual youth art show

By MEGAN HUGHES

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Ironwood - The Downtown Art Place in Ironwood is celebrating Youth Art Month by displaying art from area students in the concourse of the Historic Ironwood Theatre.

The exhibit runs through the end of the month and features works of art by students at Wakefield-Marenisco, Bessemer, Hurley and the Northwoods Christian Academy, according to exhibition chairman Peg Sandin.

Sandin gave The Globe a brief tour of the exhibit on Saturday during an open house reception for the exhibit.

"We reached out to the teachers and offered to donate 8x10 canvases for them to use," she said. "Some of the classes were able to fit them into their curriculum, but others had already finalized it for the semester."

Sandin was pleased with what was submitted.

"The quality of the work is so fun to see. It is nice to see what the kids are learning at school," she said. One example she noted was submissions from the Bessemer students who had studied famous artists, putting spins on some of their famous works.

"Wakefield-Marenisco did some original works. That is very fun to see what they are doing. The photographs were really quite interesting, being half drawn and half photo," she said.

The display also shows some of the work created at DAP art classes by students, ranging from copper etching to poured paints. The classes focus on art forms from around the world. 'We try to focus on a few different countries at a time for art classes,' she said.

The art on display ranges from pieces by 3-year olds to that created by high school students. She estimates 40 to 50 students are having their art displayed in this exhibit.

Sandin said being able to display them is an honor.

Some of the pieces are displayed on large display boards, while others hang on the wall.

"It took us a couple hours to get everything up," she said.

"They are all so wonderful," said Sandin. "It is really interesting to see the creativity of the kids and where they take it."

The display is one of three major ones that the DAP organizes. The March Youth Art Month display has been going on for seven years now. Other displays include their Merry and Bright display, held during the holiday season, and their Find your North exhibit, which is dedicated to fine art and photography.