AKRON — Students at Miller South School for the Visual and Performing Arts, especially students in sixth-grades in Alison Rich’s visual arts class, have collaborated with ACCESS Shelter for their most recent art project. This semester, the class focused their project on the greater Akron community.
Director of Engagement at ACCESS, Joy Raub, visited Miller South School to meet the students and see the artwork. She said that the artwork would fit in perfectly at the already-colorful shelter. The students told Raub about the process they went through to make the artwork, which started by looking at the website and reading the success stories shared there.
“First we learned about the shelter from their website and learned that some students in our class had family members who had stayed in shelters in the past. Then we talked about finding your audience,” said Rich.
Students worked together in a group to think about what kind of art could give inspiration to guests at the shelter. Students also have to find a piece of art from a famous artist that would inspire them to create their original work.
“It’s important for our students to understand that they can help those in need in our community in many ways. One of those ways is by using our talents to create and share that with others. It doesn’t always have to be money or volunteering. Art can really change a space and add color and emotion that might help someone in a way that is unexpected and important,” added Rich.