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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (April 11, 2019)
4 // COASTWEEKEND.COM Visual arts, literature, theater, music & more All over creation ‘WE’VE BEEN WORKING ON TRYING TO MAKE IT BIGGER THIS YEAR BY TALKING TO OTHER SCHOOLS ALONG THE COAST.’ Hayley Rollins, Seaside High School senior speaking of Oregon Art Day Seaside High and other North Coast schools celebrate art and artists in April with workshops By KATHERINE LACAZE FOR COAST WEEKEND I n 2015, an eighth-grader from Seaside School District compelled legislators to sponsor a bill designating April 14 as Honorary Artists of Oregon Day. Sea- side High School celebrated the follow- ing year by inviting regional artists to lead workshops for all students. Four years later, the school is one of several in the area honoring artists, thanks to the efforts of founder and now-senior Hayley Rollins and other Seaside students. “We’ve been working on trying to make it bigger this year by talking to other schools along the coast,” Rollins said. As stated in Oregon Bill 3042, spon- sored by retired state Rep. Deborah Boone and state Sen. Betsy Johnson, the pur- pose of Art Day is “to celebrate art and art- ists, to promote art education in this state and to encourage engagement in artistic endeavors.” The high school’s celebration Friday, April 12, will feature two dozen artists vis- iting the school and teaching workshops on a variety of art styles and processes, including oil painting, pysanky (Rus- sian and Ukrainian egg-painting), callig- raphy, book binding, water color, origami, stop-motion animation and illustration. Students can select which workshop to attend. “There are so many different avenues of art, which is great to discover,” junior Nathan Varner said, adding many people “benefi t greatly from being able to express themselves creatively.” In the past, members of Seaside’s Asso- ciated Student Body leadership served as During Art Day at Seaside High School, which takes place Friday, April 12, students can attend workshops to learn diff erent art forms, such as pysanky (Russian and Ukrainian egg-painting). student helpers to assist the instructors and manage the event. This year, Seaside’s Future Business Leaders of America chap- ter has taken on the responsibility, led by Rollins and senior Ana Rojas. Throughout the year, they have pre- sented to other schools, encouraging them to also host Art Day celebrations, and many responded. Artists who visit the high school Fri- day will lead similar workshops at Broad- way Middle School in the afternoon. The Heights Elementary School and Gearhart Elementary School were visited by dance instructors earlier in the month, leading up to a public Bollywood Dance Night, hosted by the schools’ parent-teacher orga- nizations April 5. Fire Mountain School, Cannon Beach Academy and Astoria High School also have art-related events and celebrations planned for April, turning the celebration into a month-long affair, Cannon Beach Arts Association Arts Education Director Meagan Sokol said. The association is getting involved and offering support to ensure the high school’s Art Day continues after Rollins graduates this spring. They have secured funding from grants to provide art sup- plies, snacks and a small stipend for each See Workshops, Page 13
