Brethren students join collaborative art project

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Brethren eighth graders Krissy Schneider (left), Grace Hamilton and Emma Sterzer display the wooden rounds they made as part of Michigan Legacy Art Park's "Michigan Blue" project.

Danalynn Englert, Brethren Middle School eighth grader, poses for a photo with a sunset she created as part of the "Michigan Blue" art project.

BRETHREN — Amanda Mobley's students at Brethren Middle/High School will have their work on display at the Michigan Legacy Art Park at Crystal Mountain in Thompsonville.

Patricia Innis, education director at the art park, invited Mobley and her students to contribute to "Michigan Blue," this year's collaborative artwork, which will be on display at the park into the winter.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for students to showcase their talents while learning about art pieces that require collaboration and exposing a new group of students and their families to the art park at Crystal Mountain, which many people in the area are surprisingly unaware of," Mobley said.

Mobley said kids and adults from all over the state were invited to paint or draw blue things found or associated with Michigan on 3 to 6-inch wooden tree rounds, which the art park supplied.

Krissy Schneider, an eighth grader, painted a landscape of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

"I chose to show the Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes," Schneider said. "I did this topic because our area is known for the sand dunes and Lake Michigan."

Subject matter might include water, lakes, streams, clouds, flowers, cars or even emotional experiences, according to the art park's website.

"The project is meant to have everyone explore the color blue and look at artworks in different ways and to explore the variety of ways that different artists visualize the same prompt," Mobley said.

Skylar Laufenberg, Brethren Middle School seventh grader, shows off blueberries she painted as part of a collaborative art project.

Mobley's middle school introduction to art students, as well as high schoolers in graphic design and art history participated in the project.

"I chose (to paint) a sunset because people really like watching the sunset over the lake in the summer," said Danalynn Englert, eighth grader.

All of the individual rounds will be combined to create one large piece of art that reflects the shape of waves, according to Mobley. The rounds will be tied to a large section of fishnet and attached to trees on the art park's accessibility trail.

"The idea is that the artwork will be suggestive of a stream with ripples flowing into a pond," she said.

The "Michigan Blue" artwork was installed the first week of May and will be added to over the course of the summer as more rounds are created.

Anyone wishing to participate in the project can email Innes at [email protected].

There will be opportunities throughout the spring and summer for the public to create rounds. People can create rounds from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on May 13 at the Dennos Museum Center's Spring Market Day in Traverse City, and on Saturday mornings from June 30 to Aug. 12 at the art park.

Michigan Legacy Art Park is nonprofit organization located on a 30-acre preserve of wooded hills in Benzie County. The land is leased from Crystal Mountain for $1 per year. Because of this sustainable model, the art park uses its resources efficiently and garners the support of individuals, foundations and corporations to provide mission-driven activities.

Visit michlegacyartpark.org for more information.