GHS student at Off the Wheel Pottery in Egg Harbor working on sgrafitto design

The ETC program was established in 2007 in conjunction with the Friends of Gibraltar (FOG) and pairs the students of Gibraltar High School (GHS) with experienced local artists for specialized learning in a variety of creative fields. Half-day workshops offered this year included basket-making, creative writing/poetry, ceramics, rug hooking, jewelry design, film making, collage, songwriting/creative expression, figure drawing, knitting, cement sculpture, radio and more. In this year’s program, over 150 GHS students participated in two different free half-day workshops (30 workshops total) taught by 24 area artists and arts professionals.

Stephanie Trenchard providing instruction on glass casting at Popelka Trenchard Glass Studio in Sturgeon Bay

One change in this year’s ETC program was the goal of bussing students off-campus and out into the studios and galleries of Door County’s working artists.

“We made it a priority this year to get the students off-campus so that the students could witness the artists at work in their own space,” says Elizabeth Meissner-Gigstead, the Hardy Gallery’s Executive Director. “Aside from the exposure, one of the messages we want to get across with this program is that being an artist is a viable profession. Nothing says that more than seeing an artist in his or her own gallery or studio space.”

Meissner-Gigstead also says that the collaboration with the peninsula’s local artists is imperative to the success of the ETC program. “Not only do the students benefit from the knowledge of the peninsula’s vibrant arts community, but it also provides a way for our area’s artists to engage in educational work in the off-season. It’s a great way to align the needs of the students with the immense resources offered by our peninsula’s artists.”

Now that the two-day workshops have been wrapped up, the focus is on the accompanying ETC Mentoring Program. This program pairs students with local artists for one-on-one or small group instructions. The mentorships provide encouragement, support, and in-depth training by professionals in an arts field of their choice.

The student artwork created during the ETC workshops is currently on exhibit in the Link Gallery, which is located inside of Fish Creek’s Door Community Auditorium. The exhibit is free, open to the public, and will be on display through Sunday, May 22.

GHS students hard at work in the metals workshop at Hands On Art Studio in Fish Creek

The Hardy Gallery is a non-profit organization enriching the vibrancy of the Door County community by promoting and fostering local art. The gallery on Ephraim’s historic Anderson Dock is open 10 am – 5 pm, mid-May through mid-October. For more information about the Hardy or the Exposure to Creativity (ETC) program, visit www.thehardy.org or call 920.854.2210.

These colorful flowers will make a great Mother’s Day gift, or the perfect addition to any garden. The geraniums are available in three colors – red, pink, and fuchsia – and are $6/each. Geranium orders will need to be placed by Friday, April 30. The pick-up date is scheduled for Saturday, May 8 at Gibraltar High School from 9 am – 1 pm.

Order forms for the geraniums are available on the Hardy Gallery’s website (www.thehardy.org) by clicking “2010 Hardy Plant Order Form” under the Downloads menu on the home page. Forms may also be obtained by emailing info@thehardy.org, or by calling 920.854.2210.

All proceeds raised from the plant sale will benefit the Hardy Gallery’s Exposure to Creativity program.

The Hardy Gallery is a non-profit arts organization enriching the vibrancy of the Door County community by promoting and fostering local art. The gallery is located on Ephraim’s historic Anderson Dock and is open daily from mid-May through mid-October. For more information about the Hardy, please call 920.854.2210 or visit www.thehardy.org.

On Wednesday, February 24, two new homeowners that have benefited from Door County’s Habitat for Humanity Program will receive artwork created by Gibraltar High School students as part of the Exposure to Creativity (ETC) program. A special assembly is planned for that day at 10:45 am at the Door Community Auditorium in Fish Creek.

The presentation will include a brief introduction by Vinni Chomeau, the coordinator for Friends of Gibraltar (FOG), and Elizabeth Meissner-Gigstead, Executive Director of the Hardy Gallery, whose two organizations have collaborated on this project for the past three years. The idea to create artwork for Door County’s new Habitat for Humanity homes was conceived by program administrators as a way to tie-in FOG’s theme for the year, “Service Learning,” into the ETC workshops and activities. In addition to the ETC coordinators, director Rick Nelson from the Door County chapter of Habitat for Humanity will be on hand as well as the new homeowners.

In this year’s ETC workshops, the Gibraltar High School students created a wide breadth of artwork for the homes, including ceramic lamps, framed poetry and watercolor paintings, glass fusion window hangings, ceramic bowls, metal sculptures, and more. The artwork will be on display at the assembly, which the general public is invited to attend.

The ETC program consists of two components – hands-on, creative workshops in the arts that broaden the student’s horizons, and, for those students who choose, an in-depth mentor program in a specific art medium.

“Not only does the program benefit the students, who may not know these specific artistic mediums or opportunities exist,” says Elizabeth Meissner-Gigstead, “it also enables our professional arts community to share their expertise and passion with area students.”

The Exposure to Creativity Program is co-sponsored by the Hardy Gallery and the Friends of Gibraltar with additional financial and in-kind support from the Gibraltar High School, the Northern Door YMCA, and the Peninsula School of Art. The program is also sponsored in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board. For more information on the ETC program, please visit the Hardy’s website at www.thehardy.org or call 920.854.2210.

2009 ETC Students at Studio 330 learning about recording music

The ETC program provides a free arts education program for local students aged 14-18 who attend Gibraltar High School. The program aims to provide these students with extended arts learning experiences and opportunities that supplement traditional school curriculum while giving them the potential to strengthen future academic success.

Since the project’s inception in 2007, the Hardy Gallery has delivered over 80 workshops, educated more than 350 students and provided teaching opportunities to over 30 local artists, serving as both mentors and artists-in- residence. The program consists of two components — two half-day, hands-on creative workshops that every Gibraltar High School student participates in; and, for those who are interested in furthering their skills, a mentor program in the months following the workshops. These mentorships provide encouragement, support, and in-depth training by local artists and creative professionals in an arts field of each student’s choice. The student workshops were completed in October and November 2009, with the mentorships set to launch later this month. This year the Hardy received 18 applications from students interested in furthering in the ETC program.  Both of these components are offered at no cost to the students.

Hardy ETC Students learning ceramic studio arts

As a result of information and feedback provided in written evaluations, the Hardy further continues to work in developing the program to better address the student’s needs. Changes this year included off campus sessions for upperclassmen held in instructor studios and galleries while the freshman utilized the Peninsula School of Art campus for a series of “sampler” workshops as well as participation by ComedySportz (a Milwaukee-based educational performance group) to provide a specialized workshop for the students as well as an all-school assembly program wrap-up.

The grant from the Walmart Foundation will be used to partially fund arts personnel as well as training, equipment and supplies used for the program.

“We are excited to receive grant funding from the Wal-Mart Foundation,” says Elizabeth Meissner-Gigstead, the Hardy Gallery’s Executive Director. “Walmart’s focus on youth education echoes the objectives of the ETC program, and we are grateful for their support.  We are truly fortunate to have great community partners to be able to offer and sustain this great program.”

The Hardy Gallery is a non-profit arts organization enriching the vibrancy of the Door County community by promoting and fostering local art. For more information about the Hardy, please call 920.854.2210 or visit www.thehardy.org.

The Walmart Foundation strives to provide opportunities that improve the lives of individuals in our communities including our customers and associates. Through financial contributions, in-kind donations and volunteerism, the Walmart Foundation supports initiatives focused on enhancing opportunities in our four main focus areas: education, workforce development/economic opportunity, environmental sustainability, and health & wellness. For more information on the Walmart Foundation, please visit http://walmartstores.com/CommunityGiving/203.aspx.

The ETC program, established in 2007, pairs the high school students of Gibraltar with experienced local artists for specialized learning in a variety of creative fields. Half-day workshops offered in past years have included digital photography, graphic design, theater/play writing, creative writing, poetry, gourmet cooking and food presentation, architecture, pottery, clothing design, landscape design, and more.

In the 2008 – 2009 ETC program, over 200 GHS students participated in two different half-day workshops taught by 23 area arts professionals both at the school and off-campus at an artist’s workshop or studio. After the workshops, evaluations were given to each of the students to assess their interest in participating in a small group mentor experience later in the school year. 13 students were matched with five appropriate mentors.

For the 2009 – 2010 school year, the ETC programs will work a little differently. Surveys completed by workshop instructors revealed a need to separate the freshman class due to the wide variance of skill levels among the students. All GHS freshmen will participate in a “sampler” of creative workshops this year (most of these taking place at the Peninsula School of Art) with the sophomore through senior students making selections for two half-day workshops similar to last year.

“We are excited to partner with the PSA in order to bring the students a better experience,” says Elizabeth Meissner-Gigstead, the Hardy Gallery’s Executive Director.

Peninsula School of Art serves adults and youth with high-caliber visual arts education experiences throughout the year. The year-round facility offers six to eight gallery exhibitions per year, seven working studios with equipment for ceramics, metal arts, photography, painting and drawing, print- and paper-making, as well as a comprehensive art resource library for education and inspiration. By partnering with the Peninsula School of Art, GHS students will become familiar with the equipment and resources that Peninsula School of Art has to offer. Students who choose to enroll in the mentoring program will have ongoing access to the professional caliber studios and equipment.

The last half-day workshop on November 17 will conclude with an all-school assembly program presented by ComedySportz, a motivational comedy group. After these workshops have been completed, the small group/mentor workshops will be formed at the beginning of 2010.

The collaboration between the Hardy Gallery, FOG, and PSA has been a vital one through the inception of the ETC program, and this year, the three organizations will expand to work with the Door County chapter of Habitat for Humanity. The FOG always centers its programming on a theme, and the theme for the 2009/2010 year is Service Learning, a term that combines community service with regular classroom activity. Through the ETC program, the participants will create artwork (in collaboration with the homeowners) that will hang in the homes built by Habitat for Humanity this year.

“The county’s extensive and vibrant arts community provides the necessary support for the ETC program,” says Meissner-Gigstead. “Not only do the students benefit, but it also provides an opportunity for local artists to do educational work over the off-season. It’s a great way to align the needs of the students with the immense resources offered by our peninsula’s artists.”

The Hardy’s Exposure to Creativity program was supported in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Hardy Gallery is a non-profit organization enriching the vibrancy of the Door County community by promoting and fostering local art. For more information on the Hardy or the Exposure to Creativity (ETC) program, visit www.thehardy.org or call 920.854.2210.