high school projects

Although I don't have pictures of them, I wanted to give an update on the work that the six Brightworks high school students have been doing this arc. Last week, they went with Ellen to see the documentary Finding Vivian Maier, about the recent discovery of a prolific photographer who took thousands of photographs throughout the 1940s to 60s while working as a nanny. In writing and philosophy classes they have been exploring what it means to have a self and the ways in which people express that self, the role of the artist in art, and the art of self portraiture, so exploring Maier's mysterious past and ephemera made the perfect connection.They have all chosen various arts-related projects for this Expression phase.Grace is making a video montage in the spirit of Christian Marclay's 24-hour movie The Clock, but her version will be a compilation of clips from movies of characters looking in mirrors.Tytus has been planning an epic origin of a superhero comic, with a fight scene interlaced with exposition.Isaac is composing a new album for the Mirrors arc and just learned how to play a saw, which sounds like a scratchy recording on a record player.Ben is making a detailed spray painted self portrait, made of the puzzle pieces of his front and back.Max is planning a new short film based on the psychological impacts of sitting in front of a mirror - this time in the form of a character who has to sit in a blank room for months with only a mirror for company.Madison has been working on portraying her face in different styles and with several media in preparation for a series of self-portraits based on the work of Vincent van Gogh, Frida Kahlo, and Andy Warhol.It's been great to see these older kids take the reins on their projects and watch them make progress independently, with little guidance and directions from their collaborators! We're excited to see where their ideas take them and what they create by the end of the Expression phase of Mirrors.