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frankfortstation.com life & arts<br />
the frankfort station | March 21, 2019 | 23<br />
ArtWorks 2019 celebrates Lincoln-Way artists<br />
Laurie Fanelli, Freelance Reporter<br />
Art was in the air, on the walls<br />
and across the campus of Lincoln-Way<br />
East during Lincoln-<br />
Way Community High School<br />
District 210’s annual ArtWorks<br />
event.<br />
The May 15 celebration of creativity<br />
featured more than 900<br />
works of art from kindergartners<br />
through high school seniors who<br />
attend more than 30 area schools.<br />
Attendees were encouraged to<br />
get in on the fun by participating<br />
in a variety of art demos, and local<br />
student ensembles provided<br />
the perfect soundtrack for a day<br />
of culture and imagination.<br />
D210 Art Department Chair<br />
Phil Labriola said he enjoyed<br />
seeing the evolution of talent on<br />
display from all of the art exhibition<br />
age groups.<br />
“It’s really cool to see the different<br />
levels, where students’ artwork<br />
starts out and how it keeps<br />
growing from grade to grade,”<br />
he said. “Some students have<br />
been here multiple years in a<br />
row, and they’ve had stuff in the<br />
show each year and keep working<br />
as they get older. It’s nice<br />
to see and it’s nice to hear that<br />
people are making ArtWorks a<br />
tradition to attend every year and<br />
that it’s something that actually<br />
means something to them.”<br />
Tanya, Russell, Jennavieve<br />
and Gwendolyn Mack, of New<br />
Lenox, always enjoy stopping<br />
by Artworks, but 2019 was particularly<br />
special because Gwendolyn,<br />
8, had a colorful robot<br />
painting showcased alongside<br />
the works of her Spencer Pointe<br />
classmates.<br />
“ArtWorks is great because<br />
they have all these activities we<br />
can do,” Tanya Mack said. “It’s<br />
free, it’s a day out and the kids<br />
love art.”<br />
Jennavieve Mack, who had her<br />
own art featured in 2017, added,<br />
“I like art and doodling, so I like<br />
coming to this every year.”<br />
For many families, the art<br />
demonstrations are an annual<br />
ArtWorks 2019 attendees (left to right) Josh Bulthuis, Hunter Bulthuis, Austin Borgman, Kelsey<br />
Bulthuis, Aubrey Borgman, Ashton Borgman and Addison Borgman look at sculptures from Spencer<br />
Pointe students Saturday, March 16, at Lincoln-Way East High School. Photos by Laurie Fanelli/22nd<br />
Century Media<br />
ArtWorks highlight. In 2019,<br />
participants were able to join<br />
hands-on sessions for string art<br />
paintings, origami, pinch pots in<br />
clay, jewelry making and much<br />
more.<br />
Hilda Walker teacher Joanna<br />
Olszta led an oil pastel and graffiti<br />
art demonstration that taught<br />
participants about color coordination,<br />
shading and blending<br />
techniques.<br />
“We are doing a graffiti class,<br />
so students are going to learn<br />
how to make block letters and<br />
then alter them to make them a<br />
little more funky, a little more<br />
jazzy,” said Olszta, who has<br />
been involved with ArtWorks for<br />
the past 11 years. “Then we’re<br />
going to learn how to blend oil<br />
pastels and shade with them.”<br />
She added, “I like seeing all<br />
the kids excited about art. They<br />
don’t get enough art in school<br />
nowadays, so it’s nice to be able<br />
to offer something outside of that<br />
so kids can create. Unfortunately,<br />
they’re on their tablets and<br />
technology so much that they<br />
are at risk of losing this part of<br />
themselves, the creative nature<br />
that we all have.”<br />
Attendees also enjoyed watching<br />
professional artist demos<br />
featuring oil painter John Tylk,<br />
of Frankfort, and pastel painter<br />
Ted Fuka, of Mokena. Facepainting<br />
and concessions added<br />
to the ArtWorks fun as well, and<br />
everyone was invited to stop<br />
by the Field House to visit the<br />
Frankfort Community Showcase,<br />
which was being held in<br />
conjunction with the event.<br />
Lincoln-Way East Orchestra<br />
director Michelle Freeland was<br />
on hand leading students from<br />
the Lincoln-Way Youth Strings<br />
– composed of second- through<br />
seventh-graders – in a performance<br />
in the auditorium and<br />
guiding the Lincoln-Way String<br />
Chamber Ensemble through a set<br />
in the cafeteria, where the art exhibition<br />
was held.<br />
She encourages young musicians<br />
to consider strings not only<br />
for a creative outlet, but also to<br />
develop critical thinking skills.<br />
“It creates a self-discipline and<br />
the right-brain, left-brain interaction,”<br />
she said. “Studies show<br />
that it helps them in all areas of<br />
their life.”<br />
Labriola also cited the many<br />
benefits art students enjoy in a<br />
wide variety of school subjects<br />
and said he hopes that ArtWorks<br />
has a small part in encouraging<br />
budding artists to continue in<br />
their crafts for years to come.<br />
“I think art teaches excellent<br />
problem-solving skills and research<br />
shows that students that<br />
are involved with art do better in<br />
other courses as well and they do<br />
better on testing.” he said. “It’s<br />
a really great way to foster that<br />
creativity and thinking skills. If<br />
they are passionate about art –<br />
and they enjoy it – they should<br />
continue to do it. Hopefully Art-<br />
Works helps keep that going.”<br />
Hilda Walker student Gianna Panatera, of Frankfort, poses by her<br />
colorful ArtWorks submission
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