On Monday, October 22 teens participating in Sharon Arts Center's innovative ArtAccess program traveled to Connecticut with the hopes of furthering their artistic dreams! Seven students from both ConVal and Conant High Schools (Sophomores-Seniors) attended and SAC-sponsored field trip where they "dipped their toes" into the future of their art studies and careers. The initial reason for the trip was to have the opportunity to attend a Portfolio Review Day at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, CT. Though there are regional portfolio days in Boston attended by thousands of New England teens, Sharon Arts staff cited the Connecticut event as a more intimate opportunity (only 180 students attended last year) to meet with admissions reps from some of best art schools in the country. The Portfolio Review Day is designed to provide a unique and inspirational environment in which students considering a career in the arts will receive input on their portfolios from art school admissions officers. ArtAccess, a new program in it's second year, provides high school artists with unparalleled access to resources and opportunities to learn about art in its many forms as well as to strengthen and diversify their art portfolios through the resources of Sharon Arts.

On their way to the portfolio event, the students made two very special stops. Their first was a visit to the studio of Heather Lawless a ConVal alum and former Sharon Arts staffer who is currently enrolled in Maine College of Art's MFA program. Heather spoke with the teens about alternative paths to becoming an artist (her initial intention was to be pre-med) and gave them a sense of the "pulse" of the contemporary art world as she pursues her career as an artist. Nora LaCasse, a Conant Junior and Jaffrey resident reflected about visiting with Lawless: "Taking the time to visit your studio brought the entire prospect of becoming an artist to a whole new level. Knowing that you were in our shoes not too long ago, and seeing how you have come so far in so little time really put into perspective that everything we imagine is possible." The second stop was to the studio of cardboard sculptor Jimmy Grashow. Grashow, who many in the region remember from his May 2005 Aquarium of the Imagination exhibit in conjunction with Peterborough's Children and the Arts Festival, was excited to open his doors to the teens. With dozens of cardboard monkeys hanging from the rafters, Jimmy presented his work to and invited questions. His current project, a replica of the Trevi Fountain in Rome, built from cardboard was the centerpiece of the creative and messy space. ConVal junior and cardboard enthusiast Terra Fletcher of Peterborough recalls, "We thought his studio was so fabulous- like a cardboard wonderland! We were all so inspired be seeing his work. It was a great opening to the wonders of interdisciplinary sculpture!"

At The Aldrich Museum's Portfolio Day, "ArtAccessers' had their pick of tables throughout the exhibition space to go through their portfolios with representatives from the following schools: Boston University's School of Visual Arts, Cambridge School of Visual & Performing Arts, The Cooper Union, Maine College of Art, Montserrat College of Art, The School of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, New Hampshire Institute of Art, Pratt Institute Purchase College, SUNY: School of Art and Design, Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, School of Visual Arts, and University of Hartford's Hartford Art School. For three hours, the teens moved through the space jotting down notes and feedback from the admissions counselors to help design the year's curriculum with a desire to round out their portfolios during their time in the program.

The students returned to Sharon Arts inspired from their journey and with renewed enthusiasm about pursuing art as a career path. They will continue to meet weekly through June to prepare their portfolios and to explore the art world with local artist and educator Naomi Graham as their guide. Sharon Arts is excited to help these young, talented artists navigate through the art world towards their dreams.

The following students were in attendance: Lily Featherston (ConVal Senior), Terra Fletcher (ConVal Junior), Nora LaCasse (Conant Junior), Lorin Reutlinger (ConVal Senior), Liz Quick (Conant Sophomore), Katherine Wilkinson (Conant Senior), and Lauryn Welch (ConVal Junior).


For more information about ArtAccess, visit www.sharonarts.org To learn about artists Heather Lawless and Jimmy Grashow visit their web sites www.heatherlawless.com and www.jamesgrashow.com

The Sharon Arts Center is celebrating its 60th year as a non-profit arts organization serving the community

OUR MISSION
The mission of the Sharon Arts Center, a non-profit organization, is to support and serve artists and craftspeople, to engage our community in the artistic process, and to foster the relationship between artists and the community through education, exhibitions, the promotion and sale of art and craft, as well as through special programs and events.

OUR VISION
The Sharon Arts Center will be the heart of artistic experience and education in our community, a vibrant center of individual and collaborative activity, providing a stimulating environment that nourishes a wellspring of ideas and creativity. Our organization will protect and preserve the traditions and history of art and craft, while embracing and encouraging innovations of experimental media and advances in technology. As a highly valued, integral part of our community, the Sharon Arts Center will be known as the comprehensive arts resource in our region, where the artist in all of us, from the newly-awakened to the long-established, can connect with the intrinsic value of art in our lives.