Students taking Introduction to Art took part in creating a mural of Amanda Gorman—an American poet and activist. She is the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history, as well as an award-winning writer and cum laude graduate of Harvard University. This work is displayed in the hallway, connecting the history and the English wings of Scituate High School.
SHS art teacher Sheryl Pace explained that when choosing subjects for the mural project, students in her class focused on people who “deserve recognition.” Gorman was selected to help raise awareness during Women’s History Month. Pace said she uses this form of expression “as a teaching opportunity to engage students and make a memorable work of art.”
The project is a charcoal value portrait that requires each student to complete a small portion. Pace commented, “Students were instructed to work collaboratively to create a cohesive value scale portrait in charcoal,” which was achieved by “working together to combine individual thumbnail sections.”
Individual pieces were combined to create a beautiful final product. In total, 17 students contributed to the piece, each making one square. SHS freshman Monica Mueller noted, “I was assigned a part of the hair.” Using charcoal smudged on gray paper, Mueller created a unique design element. SHS senior Haley Reynolds, who participated by making different parts of the face, said she tried to make the portrait “look as natural and realistic as possible.” During the collaboration process, Reynolds thought it was “fun to see everyone recreate their own pieces” as the mural “came together in the end like a puzzle.”
Members of the art department are planning future mural projects, which could include portraits of Bob Marley, Dolly Parton, and Albert Einstein.