Category: Creativity

Spring 2022 Iridescence Literary Magazine Now Available Online

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Iridescence Literary Magazine showcases art, photography, and creative writings submitted by 9-12 Sheboygan North High students. Take a look at the Spring 2022 issue and download your very own copy. Printed copies will become available in early June 2022. Pending delivery delays.

Iridescence Literary Magazine was founded and conceptualized in 2021 by Junior Grace Z.

Advisors: Mrs. Cavanaugh, Mr. Juárez, and Mr. McGoldrick.

Iridescence Literary Magazine is supported by a grant from the Kohler Foundation, Inc.

8 questions with Editor-in-Chief, Grace Z.

Mr. Juárez: What is Iridescence?

Grace Z: Iridescence is a yearly literary magazine produced entirely by North High students. Throughout the year, we collect submissions and select a diverse amount of writing and art to be placed in the magazine. 

MJ: What was the inspiration behind Iridescence Literary Magazine?

GZ: I was first inspired to start Iridescence after I saw another high school literary magazine in a school library. Seeing that it was all curated, created, and collected by students, it was truly inspiring to see a glimpse of the students’ creativity from that school. I wanted to bring that same opportunity for students at Sheboygan North High, which is what led me to founding the Iridescence Literary Magazine. 

MJ: How did you come up with the name of the magazine?

GZ: Iridescence is defined as: “showing luminous colors that seem to change when seen from different angles.” This name resonated with me the most as I felt that in a metaphorical way, that represented the purpose of the Iridescence Literary Magazine– a publication that showcases the vibrant, creative aspects of Sheboygan North High School in a new light. 

MJ: What is the goal of the magazine?

GZ: The goal for the magazine is to provide a platform for students at Sheboygan North High School to showcase their work. Whether that be words or illustrations, we encourage students to get their work out there, become published creatives, and have their work seen throughout the community.

MJ: What long-term goals do you have for the magazine?

GZ: The Iridescence Literary Magazine aspires to foster an atmosphere of individual creativity. We intend to promote emerging strong, unique voices to represent the talented group of emerging writers in Sheboygan and elsewhere.

MJ: Have you encountered challenges during the process of putting it together?

GZ: The challenge with putting the magazine together was making sure that every detail was taken care of. From designing all of the pages, collecting submissions, to acquiring funding, the process of putting the magazine together took countless hours. However, even so, it was truly an incredibly exciting and rewarding process. To be able to have a final magazine with work from Sheboygan North High feels truly incredible, and I’m looking forward to putting together issue #3 next year as well.

MJ: What have you learned about yourself as the editor-in-chief?

GZ: Being editor-in-chief of the Iridescence Literary Magazine has taught me a lot. I’ve learned not only about the process of making such a magazine and having it being printed, but also many life lessons along the way. Time management, planning, and communication has been an integral part in Iridescence, and I hope to continue learning and improving as Iridescence’s editor-in-chief.

MJ: What advice would you give a fellow student in pursuit of a creative project?

GZ: My greatest advice would be to find a mentor. Whether that be a teacher, someone who works in that field, or a parent, finding someone who is preferably knowledgeable in your particular creative project is extremely helpful, as they can help guide you through the process. For Iridescence, my advisors and teachers are my mentors. I feel incredibly grateful to have all their support, as they have played a significant role in helping make the Iridescence Literary Magazine possible.

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Radial Designs by Art Foundations 1 and Senior Art 1

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Lesson available upon request.

Lesson available upon request. Complete form below.

“Reflections on this Moment in Time” – an Art Foundations 4 online exhibition

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Galleries, arts center, artist run spaces, and art museums have all closed since mid-March due to the pandemic. Many of which canceled or postponed their exhibitions and events until further notice. At Sheboygan North High School, we have an exhibition space called NHS ARTifacts Gallery, which showcases all of our students’ works from across all content areas. To continue our programming, we’ve put together an online exhibition featuring new works by our Art Foundations 4 students.

The Sheboygan North High Art Department believes that art should be shared beyond the walls of our school. Nowadays, art can be shared through various platforms, many of which are now being used online. We experience art from all over the globe through virtual studio tours to ZOOM artist talks, augmented virtual art exhibitions to social media. This exhibition, “Reflections on this Moment in Time” provided our Art Foundations 4 students the opportunity to use art as a way to reflect, respond, and connect to what is happening right now through their art, their creativity, and their perspective.

Exhibition

Featured artists

Abigail Beyersdorf
 
This piece shows the reality of what it feels like through the difficult times of quarantine. We are forced to social distance ourselves from others. Being stuck inside we must go virtual/online to work, chat and basically keep our sanity. We can go outside and go places, but we have to be careful because you never when you can catch the virus.
 
Abigail Beyersdorf, Stuck Inside, 2020, Prismacolor colored pencils on poster board, 9 x 8.5 inches
Ted Wind
 
“Muffled”, which is a parody of Edvard Munich’s infamous painting, “The Scream” reflects my feelings during the coronavirus pandemic. Each day this pandemic goes on I feel like I want to scream. I tried to capture this feeling in the painting. The man’s mask which covers his scream represents how China covered up the virus and how trapped we all feel in isolation from others. The river behind the man is polluted and filled with radioactive waste and the bank on the left is full of graves. The man wants to scream out against all the injustice that is being done to the world and to himself but can’t… all because of the mask.
 
Ted Wind, “Muffled”, Acrylic paint on paper, 10 x 8 inches. 2020
Emily Fisher
 
I decided to draw a doctor with a mask on. I wanted to do this because doctors are so important in this crisis. They are saving lives and I wanted to represent that in my drawing. They are heroes. I added paint on the mask to make it pop and to represent how important it is to be safe and to not get infected. On the background I painted it a dark red color because the coronavirus is that color and I wanted to have a dramatic feel. Finally, the doctor is in a side view because it makes her look determined and ready to face the disease.

Emily Fisher, “Hero in Disguise”, Pencil and acrylic on paper, 12 x 9 inches, 2020
Erik Mujkanovic
 
The intent of my artwork was to show negative emotions of the whole covid-19 situation. I wanted to symbolically put objects to represent parts of our lives where we are losing. I put in adjectives for each object to show emotions. Finally, I rarely get migraines, but when I do, there are lots of fuzzy, and flashy colors in all peripheral vision. I tried to represent that on the edges of the piece. I did that because when I get these migraines, it gives me an intense headache, like the virus. I get blind spots wherever I look, hence why I called it, Losing Vision.
 
Erik Mujkanovic, “Losing Vision”, Sharpie and acrylic on paper, 8.5 x 11 inches, 2020
Samantha Wood
 
My drawing is about when I go to with my dad to Lake Michigan. I saw some big waves while it was nice out. I see people walk. 
 
Samantha Wood, “Lake Michigan”, Markers on paper, 12 x 9 inches, 2020
Anthony Eckert
 
This painting communicates how I feel about the coronavirus. I’m upset.
 
Anthony Eckert, “Upset by the Day”, Acrylic on canvas, 8 x 10 inches, 2020
Anny Chang
 
The purpose of the artwork I created was because when we were being quarantined I realized that everyone must wear a mask when they go outside or go shopping. I heard that kids at age 1-9 can’t go shopping because they might get infected by other people in the stores. 
 
Anny Chang, “The Mask of Quarantine”, Colored pencil on paper, 11 x 8.5 inches, 2020
Spencer Collins
 
I wanted this piece to give people a very eery feeling but also help to maybe educate on the effects this is having on the United States. The fact we live in Sheboygan, we have been kept within a fairly safe distance from the epicenter of this pandemic. I feel that because of our distance from this we cannot truly feel the effects of the virus, and that’s why I want to show the effects through my art. I think my piece does a great job of displaying how vulnerable we are, no matter how big we build, we can still be crippled and sent into very hard times. 
 
Spencer Collins, “Eery”, Prismacolor colored pencil on paper, 12 x 9 inches, 2020
Andy Thao
 
My intention of my artwork is to show how the world would look if the virus isn’t gone. It communicates people wearing a mask to be protected!
 
Andy Thao, “Covid-19 Burndown Takeover”, Pencil on paper, 8.5  x 11 inches, 2020
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Mary Johnson
 
I created a cartoon drawing of people hurrying to get toilet paper instead of looking for the cure. It communicates our society’s messed up priorities.
 
Mary Johnson, “Hidden”, Markers on paper, 8.5 x 11 inches, 2020
Justin Gmach
 
My art piece is of a man looking out his window in quarantine. In this piece you can see the shaded black sky to create of dark and sad mood. You can also see very large buildings in the background to show a city with lights on in the buildings.
 
Justin Gmach, “Mood”, Colored pencil on paper, 8.5 x 11 inches, 2020
Luecy Xiong
 
Through the difficulty and dark times we are facing right now, there is still hope for the world to return to its former state. The word “hope” resonates with this piece through the bright glow in the girl’s eyes. The restrictions of interacting have inspired me to restrict the tools I’ve used in this piece, resorting to my fingers, a ruler, and paint. 
 
Luecy Xiong, “Hope”, Acrylic on canvas, 18 x 14 inches, 2020
Florence Butterfield
 
In my art piece, I wanted to try to show how the whole world is struggling with the coronavirus. I made a collage of pictures of the Earth. All the pictures are news articles from all over the world. The Earth is also representing the shape of the coronavirus. The “land” is made up of the coronavirus showing every continent has it. The water and the Alert are made up of photos from different news stories. It also shows how so many healthcare workers are risking their lives by helping people.
 
Florence Butterfield, “Alert”, Collage on paper, 24 x 18 inches, 2020
Aileen Zenk
 
This is an 8 x 10 inch painting that focuses on a girl. She is all alone and wearing a mask. She is surrounded by different shades of green, which symbolizes germs all around her. She looks a little emotionless or overwhelmed with everything going on in our world today. The point of this painting is to show how important it is to wear a mask and stay safe.  
 
Aileen Zenk, “Stay Safe”, Acrylic  on paper, 10 x 8 inches, 2020
Amelia Redell
 
This painting shows the feelings of fear, loneliness and uncertainty during the pandemic.
 
Amelia Redell, “Alone in Fear”, Acrylic on paper, 11 x 8.5 inches, 2020

A COVID-19 Coloring Book (downloadable)

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a_covid_19_coloring_book_2020Download

A note from Mr. Juarez

On March 17th, schools across Wisconsin closed due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. I noticed a trend forming with higher education and how it would change education after Spring Break. Not knowing how this would affect K-12 public education and noticing an increase in online activity on social media regarding this pandemic and how it was going to change the infrastructure of art education made me think about our art students.

There is a group on FaceBook called Online Art Teachers. In this group, I reached out to an art teacher, Angie Hamele Szabo from Forth Atkinson High School, to see if I could use an activity that she created and assigned her students called YAY Art Bingo.

One of the drawing prompts that I kept as part of our version of YAY Art Bingo was Covid-19 is changing our world overnight and it is very surreal. Create a piece that captures your feelings and thoughts in this moment in history. At the time, I wanted my students to create a piece of art to fulfill the requirements of the project. Little did I know, that this pandemic would become our reality and change how we currently teach art.

The weekend before Governor Evers’s announcement stating that school would be closed until April 4th, I had somewhat of a plan.

The thing that I love about art is how it provides us with a way to express ourselves. It is a great medium to reflect and to make sense of what is happening. No matter where we live, we are all facing the same challenges. 

How do we cope with what is becoming our new norm? In what ways can we find comfort in what we experience from our own homes? How can we use art to heal?

This coloring book is a compilation of drawings that my Art Foundations 2 and Senior Art 2 students created based on their thoughts, feelings, and their level of understanding surrounding this pandemic. It brings me joy knowing that art can be a way of escape even if it is for a moment. 

This PDF can be downloaded and shared. 

Courtesy of the Sheboygan North High School and contributing artists. 

Mr. Juarez

Art Department Chair

Art teachers impact others through best practices

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For Immediate Release

Sheboygan North High

Art Department

2926 N. 10th Street

Sheboygan, WI 53083

Contact Information

Frank Juarez, art department chair

fjuarez@sasd.net

Press Release

Sheboygan, Wisconsin – Local art teachers from the Sheboygan Area School District were selected from a pool of 120 art teachers from the state of Wisconsin to present at this year’s fall conference in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.

The Wisconsin Art Education Association (WAEA) conference runs from October 17 – 18, 2019 at Silver Lake College in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.  This conference brings over 300+ art educators from across the state to learn new teaching strategies, opportunities for networking, present on topics that are making a difference inside their art rooms, and to rejuvenate the creative spirit. This Fall, four Sheboygan Area School District K-12 art teachers will be presenting. They are Michelle Jorgensen (Sheridan Elementary), Frank Juarez (Sheboygan North High), Brian Sommersberger (Sheboygan South High), and Mary Starnitcky (Pigeon Elementay).

Michelle Jorgensen and artist, Erica Huntzinger, will be presenting on “Art Therapy Techniques in the Classroom”. They will be sharing the art therapy techniques that Huntzinger brought to the elementary schools during her artist residency at Sheridan, Washington, Lincoln Erdman, Pigeon River, Etude Elementary and Jefferson last school year. 

Students working with artist Erica Huntzinger at Sheridan Elementary

Frank Juarez will be presenting on “Social Networking via Skype”. This presentation introduces an innovative way to connect art students with professional contemporary artists from across the globe. Skype is a great platform to engage students in critiques, Q & A, virtual tours of artists’ studios, building art community, and so on. 

Sheboygan North High art students Skyping with LA-based, collage artist, Jay Riggio

Brian Sommersberger will be co-presenting with local artist, Craig Grabhorn, on “Malibu of the Midwest” Surfboard Making”. This presentation will provide K-12 art teaches with a new perspective into the surf culture of Sheboygan and how it became known as the Midwest Surfing Capital! The presentation will feature the process of board making along with student and community experience. Cultural connections to the great lakes and the shores of Sheboygan will also be highlighted.

Artist Craig Grabhorn working with South High art students on making surfboards

Mary Starnitcky will be presenting on “How to connect with your little artists”. This session will take art educators to new ideas and a few hands-on art projects to make art classes maybe run a little smoother.

About WAEA

The mission of the Wisconsin Art Education Association is to promote excellence in visual art and design education for all students by providing professional growth opportunities for visual art and design teachers, showcasing student talents and abilities supporting art and design as academic core disciplines, communicating with other art and design organizations, and offering lifelong learning opportunities acting on vital art and design education issues.

For further information, please email Frank Juarez at fjuarez@sasd.net.

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End of the Year Celebration at Sheboygan North High Art Department

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We end the 2018-2019 school year with two amazing programs, The National Art Honor Society (NAHS) and the Artist-in-residency Program (AiR).

The Sheboygan North High Art Department officially became a National Art Honor Society (NAHS) chapter. This is the first chapter of its kind in our North High history dedicated to the visual arts. 

Visual arts education is essential to 21st-century learning. As a new NAHS chapter we utilized the National Art Education Association (NAEA) to stay ahead of developments in the field of arts education by being introducing a broad perspective of research, issues, and policy trends that are key in art education. As a NAHS chapter we connected to thousands of chapters from around the globe who are passionate about the integral role of the visual arts in ensuring all students to receive a high-quality, effective, and well-rounded education. 

We believe that the National Art Honor Society will contribute to reaching our building goals. In addition, introducing students to a diverse art offering beyond the walls of North High will expand their minds, to participate in new art experiences, and to provide leadership opportunities, which will contribute to their personal and academic growth. Student success is very important to us and our professional goal is to assist them in their journeys.

The NAHS Chapter created three committees focused on fundraising, community outreach, and beautifying our school environment through art.

We created partnerships with the John Michael Kohler Arts Center and the MEAD Library.

Below is a collection of images that our students participated in as well as a video celebrating the completion of our “Be the Next Generation” Mural, an exit interview and artist talk with Craig Grabhorn, and poetry readings.

Gallery

Mural in progress

National Art Honor Society’s (NAHS) mural, “Be the Next Generation”, is a gift to North High School and its students. As you can see, it pictures the words, “be the next generation” underlying a sprouting seedling. Planning the mural, we wanted the sprout to symbolize everyone who feels lost or isolated while also standing for growth. Nature is an empowering force. No matter where, it finds a way. Even from the concrete, nature erects itself in masses of green foliage. A sproutling is small, inferior, and feeble. We could easily uproot it with our bare hands, but sproutlings grow. They persevere between the concrete and with time they rise to the sky and become towering trees. We are the trees, we can grow and become greater things. We have always persisted; from the very beginning when we were wild and instinctual, to now where we face the stresses of everyday life. We grow and adapt. We become today and the rising suns of tomorrow.        

The word “generation” is a major point of the mural. Each letter was painted by a different member of NAHS with what they perceived as “the next generation” or simply their thoughts on the phrase and their inspirations. By incorporating the “art” into the word “generation” we are literally proclaiming that what we, all of us, aspire for in the future will become the next generation. 

We want to encourage and inspire the generations of now to take a stand for both others and themselves, regardless of their skin color, their background, their gender, their sexual orientation, and etc. You don’t have to conform to the society of yesterday. Be who you want to be and who you need to be for the good of the world. – Sara Vang, grade 10

Artist-in-residency with Craig Grabhorn (Exit Interview)

Hear what he has to say about his experience at North High as a visiting artist.

Video: End of the Year Celebration at Sheboygan North High School

In this video we share with you the unveiling of “Be the Next Generation”, artist talk with Craig, and poetry readings by students & advisor (in response to Craig’s art).

Artist in Residence Update

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While getting familiar with couple of teachers and their classrooms I have been working on some painting studies as well as continuing work on a series of tapestry inspired mono-prints. These prints are built using the screen printing process, I intuitively work to compose these minimal compositions with balance in mind as I play with color and shape to develop the compositions. My work is inspired by light and color of nature, compositions reflect broken down or minimized ideas we find in our surroundings.

small painting studies
small painting studies
screen printing process
tapestry mono-prints
screen printing process

Artist Lecture Series kicks off in October with artist, Cristian Andersson

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CRISTIAN ANDERSSON, ARTIST (APPLETON)

October 11, 2018

Period 6

Room 221

(not open to the public)

click image to enlarge

BIO

Cristian Andersson is an artist working in Appleton, Wisconsin. While much of his work tends towards abstract painting, he believes that the medium must fit the message and will experiment with installation and performance based mechanisms to craft what is necessary to deliver his thoughts to the audience. His years at Columbia College in Chicago studying painting and performance, and then later graduating from the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay with a number of photography and printmaking courses, allowed him the platform to begin his multi-disciplinary approach.

It is through this work that he wants the audience to assess the passage of time. Question our collective past, what is remembered and forgotten, and, ultimately, how we use our history to reconcile new opportunities afforded to us through modernity. With every sea-change  in our society, Andersson asks for us to consider what it does to our humanity.

SCRIPTORIUM STATEMENT

The contemporary nature of “breaking news” is that it is pervasive. It is invasive. It is an onslaught. And, it can be addictive.

Newspapers and network television have always been sources of insight, but now with the infiltration of the news into social media and alerts presented by mobile devices, I have become constantly aware of the next social or political concern that I “have to deal with.” Maybe you feel this also. Thankfully, there is the ability to lightly skim through social media. Multi-task while the television is on, and temporarily push the storylines into the background. And yet, it is hard to completely shut out.

This work asks what happens when I do the opposite of tuning out and instead completely submerse myself into the unpredictable current of my Twitter feed and news alerts. I ask myself what are the opinions, and what are facts? I question the mechanisms of deliverance. And then, ultimately, wonder how unpredictable any of this really is. This work is the product of six months of forced inundation, and it hopes to answer what the weight of all this information looks like, and possibly hints what the impact has been upon me – and perhaps you too.

Welcome to the “Scriptorium.”

Gallery

Images courtesy of the artist.