BY Erica Schwartz
Some 80 elementary students embraced their creative side at the Herricks Summer Art Program, a one-week summer camp held from July 27 to July 3 at Herricks Middle School.
creating colorful art portfolio bags that were filled with the artwork they created
throughout the week.
created their own.
Led by Doreen McDevitt, Jessica D’Angelo and Amanda Rodriguez, students experimented with different creative mediums and techniques, like paint, plaster, printmaking and clay. In keeping with this year’s camp theme of superheroes, campers used plaster and paint to create superhero masks and clay to create superhero pendants.
bag he created on the first day of the Herricks Summer Arts Program.
The first craft the students worked on was one-of-a-kind portfolio bags to hold the rest of the crafts the students made throughout the week. Teachers tasked the students with painting their portfolio bags with designs that reflected their interests and identity. By the end of the week, each student’s bag was filled with the new crafts they created each day.
Teachers used crafts as a medium to teach students about famous and local artists, like Megan Coyle, a New York City-based collage artist and illustrator. Students were guided in creating city landscapes out of magazine scraps in the style of Coyle’s art. Campers also learned about famous portraits before getting to paint their own self-portraits.
As part of the printmaking lesson, students learned about street art and created their own stamps to use on the collective brick mural. According to a slideshow from Herricks Public Schools, students loved seeing their designs on display at the end of the week on the outdoor art camp mural.
This camp brought students together to create and connect. The Herricks Summer Art Camp was an amazing opportunity for students to foster their love of art and create beautiful projects to bring home, while forming friendships and making lasting memories.
