Student Art Exhibit Focuses on Conservation and the Environment

The Roosevelt-Vanderbilt National Historic Sites (RVNHS) and the FDR Presidential Library/Museum partnered with the International Fiber Collaborative (IFC Projects) to put on their 5th annual student art exhibit. This year’s art project theme “Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Environment” invited students to create pieces based on their interpretation of the phrase.

The featured art pieces hang inside the Henry A. Wallace Center located at the FDR Home and Presidential Library/Museum in Hyde Park, N.Y.

(Left) Two students from the South Carolina School for the Blind, Spartanburg, S.C. work on their piece entitled “Animal Forest.” (Right) Student artists from the Abelard Reynolds School #42, Rochester, N.Y. with their submitted artwork: “Deer in the forest.” Photos courtesy of IFC.

“I’ve developed the process for pulling these shows together over the last 11 years. It’s been a process, but so far I am thrilled with the progress we’ve made,” said artist Jennifer Marsh, the Creative Director and founder of the IFC.

A total of 2,378 students from 79 schools have collaborated on hundreds of submissions throughout the five year partnership between IFC, RVNHS and the FDR Presidential Library/Museum. This year’s exhibit involved 314 students from 15 schools.

The 73 pieces on display in the Henry A. Wallace Center at the FDR Home and Presidential Library/Museum include a wide range of talent, originality, and creativity. Students used a variety of mediums such as acrylic paint and pastel crayons to textured materials like burlap fabric and plastic wrap to construct their unique art pieces. IFC supplies schools with the canvases as well as provides dozens of ideas for additional materials and techniques that both students and teachers can explore.

A group of 8th graders at the South Carolina School for the Blind in Spartanburg, S.C. created their “Animal Forest” piece (pictured above) using a combination of felt, fabric, pipe cleaners, pom-poms, foam paper, buttons, markers, a plastic lid, and hot glue. Each student designed one tree and an animal for the forest in order to represent their personalities and ultimately reflect how they all grow together as students in a class. “We made the artwork tactile because we all have visual impairments. The tactile qualities make it possible for people who can’t see to enjoy our artwork,” said the students.

Jennifer Marsh, founder of the IFC and Creative Director. Photo courtesy of www.tafalist.com.

The RVNHS show is one of 18 other exhibits organized by IFC for the 2018–2019 period. Founded by Marsh in 2007, IFC operates as a non-profit organization promoting global collaborative public art initiatives by organizing between 18–30 annual exhibits based on themes chosen by each site. “With fewer available places over the years for youth to express themselves, IFC has found a way in which we can help by locating and securing these exhibition sites,” said Marsh.

(Left) “A Nation” created by Derrick, MacKenzie, Jasmine at Lincoln Middle School, Lincoln, R.I. (Right) “Transpiration Inspiration” created by Hanna at S.S. Seward Institute, Florida, N.Y. Photos courtesy of IFC.

(Left) “The Roosevelts Strolling in the Forest” created by Tylah at Stuart Mesa Community School, Oceanside, Calif. (Right) “Keep the Grand Canyon Grand” created by students at Chester Elementary School, Chester, N.Y. Photos courtesy of IFC.

While some students chose to depict the beauty and value of national attractions such as the Grand Canyon, others reflected on the meaning of FDR’s most famous quotes about the environment and conservation. Tylah, a student artist from Oceanside, Calif. added some humor to her piece by including a special character to her drawing of the Roosevelts. “I learned that the Roosevelts helped created the National Parks and loved the forest and the trees so I drew them in the forest hanging out together,” Tylah stated. “I also decided to put Shrek peeking out from behind a tree…just for fun.”

The RVNHS exhibit is free of charge and open to the general public until May 31. The Henry A. Wallace Center is open seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. A collection of submitted artwork is also available for viewing online.

“As founder of the IFC I am honored to see so many talented students across America submit art each year. It is absolutely amazing how incredibly creative and honest youth can be when expressing themselves through the arts,” said Marsh. “I hope that the public enjoys these displays and might find inspiration in these well thought out works of art.”