Whitewater Middle School to host ceremony for art project
The Whitewater Middle School stained glass project, a collaborative art project, began in the fall of 2013. The completed work will be unveiled at a ceremony next week.
With the help of Sonja Kipper, a local stained glass artist and retired art teacher, all WMS eighth grade students were given the unique opportunity to help design a series of glass panels to adorn the school’s front office.
“The stained glass mural documents each year in the middle school experience and commemorates both academic and fine arts classes, as well as extra curricular activities,” Stacy Johnson, art teacher at the middle school said.
The student designs were then handed over to Kipper who assembled the glass panels in her home studio. To date, five panels have been completed, with the final two panels set to be unveiled next week, according to Johnson.
Throughout the school year, Kipper visited the WMS art room to demonstrate the various phases of the stained glass process with students.
“By bringing her studio the art classroom, students are given the opportunity to practice the art of glass cutting, foil wrapping, and soldering. These demonstrations provide students a hands-on experience working with glass, allowing them to see the progress as the student-designed panels near completion,” Johnson said.
The school will host an unveiling ceremony to reveal the final two panels in this series on Thursday, May 19 at 6:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be provided.
“Parents, teachers, students, administrators, and community members are all encouraged to attend. During the ceremony, the completed work will be revealed. Students who attended the weekly design meetings will discuss the subject matter within the composition, and Mrs. Kipper will provide a short explanation of the stained glass process,” Johnson said. To conclude the ceremony, she added, the school will hold a drawing to give away a small stained glass piece that was created by students during Kipper’s demonstrations. Anyone who attends will be eligible to win.
