Saint Ursula Academy art students are making a difference in the East Walnut Hills community by donating a large canvas painting to Mercy Neighborhood Ministries. The artwork was created by the students with Mercy in mind, focusing on the community members who depend on the charity for food.
16 Art-2 students, ranging from sophomores to seniors and guided by art teacher Kurt Nicaise, worked together to learn about the people Mercy serves and plan the project. The process began with a visit from Saint Ursula’s Community Service Learning coordinator, Peggy Platz ’84, who talked to them about the many services Mercy Neighborhood Ministries provides, the people they service as a food pantry, and why and how people get their food there. They also talked about the history of this project and the importance of understanding the services provided by the recipient of the artwork in order to create a meaningful and impactful piece of art.
Then the actual painting began. The large canvas was divided into eight sections, with the students working in pairs. Each pair contributed to the palette by choosing their unique color, with half choosing a warm color and half choosing a cool color.
The students tested their chosen palette on the computer first to see how the colors would relate. Then, the student pairs painted the solid background colors in their assigned area and then established their unique individual marks for the base layer. Students invited other girls to paint their unique mark in other areas. Also incorporated fruits and vegetables over the top of the base layer in more intense colors on top in proportionate sizes. This added the theme to the artwork that will hang in or near the food pantry at Mercy. The entire active painting process took just under two weeks.
The process they followed helped the girls learn to work collaboratively as a team and come to concensus, a skill that is critical as they move forward in school and beyond.
Students who created the artwork for Mercy include:
Hailey Baca of Anderson Twp.
Eugenia Campos of Montgomery
Cecilia Decurtins of North Avondale
Makiya Finley of Green Twp.
Rachel Hartness of Loveland
Louisa Hummel of Mt. Lookout
Caitlyn Hyland of West Chester
Lauren Kauffman of Miami Heights
Lillian Krueger of Madeira
Hannah Lesko of Bridgetown
Audrey Oehler of Anderson Twp.
Elizabeth Pendergast of Montgomery
Macaira Pucci of Anderson Twp.
Marion Reilly of Sharonville
Elizabeth Summers of Miami Heights
Riley Wagner of Hyde Park
“It’s part of the school’s mission to educate students who are committed to building a better world.” Said Saint Ursula Academy Principal Dr. Mari Thomas. “That means taking each subject to a deeper level. As in this example, the student not only learned the art techniques, but they learned about a need and how to make an impact with their artwork.”
This is the 3rd year of this community service learning project. Previous art works created by Saint Ursula Art-2 students were donated to Dress for Success and CAIN- Churches Active in Northside.