This Friday, January 9th, over a hundred pieces of art created by students from the Boys & Girls Club of Buffalo will be on display at the Buffalo Niagara Convention & Visitor Bureau’s gallery inside the Market Arcade Building. The annual show features artwork created by students participating in the Ashford Hollow Foundation’s arts in education program.
The Market Arcade Building is located at 617 Main Street in downtown Buffalo. The opening will run from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
“This is truly one of the most unique student art programs in the country,” said Simon Griffis, Executive Director of the Ashford Hollow Foundation, which owns and operates the Essex Art Center in Buffalo and the Griffis Sculpture Park in Cattaraugus County. “The students come into our Griffis Studio for Youth, utilize New York State Learning Standards in the creative process and then go create their sculpture – sometimes using a plasma cutter or welder. I am continuously amazed on the level of sophistication and creativity the students achieve in their artwork.”
Through a grant provided by the John R. Oishei Foundation, the Ashford Hollow Foundation has been providing arts in education programming for the Boys and Girls Club of Buffalo for over ten years. Once a week over a four to six-month period, instructors from the Ashford Hollow Foundation either visit each Boys and Girls Club in Buffalo, or the students visit the Griffis Studio for Youth at the Essex Arts Center. During this time, the students learn about how math, science or history are incorporated into art. The students then begin to design their artwork, with the final step being the actual creation of their idea. The results will be displayed at the annual art show this Friday night.
“It is an absolute joy to be working with the Boys & Girls Club of Buffalo,” said Griffis. “Every day our instructors and myself witness how art and creativity can make a tremendous positive impact on our city’s youth.”
An interesting tidbit about this show, is that it incorporates wood from the 2006 October storm, which the students transform into interesting abstract sculpture. This program was a companion to the larger ongoing Carvings for a Cause public art project.