TRC employee helps children develop their artistic skills

Johnny assesses the artists' work as they add trees to their landscapes.

A partnership between The Resource Center and a local school has given pupils there the opportunity to develop their painting skills and have their works exhibited publicly.

The Catholic Academy of the Holy Family received a grant titled “The Joy of Painting — A Study of the Landscapes of Western New York State.”  The grant was made possible by the art$TART Program, a local arts-in-education funding program that is administered by The Arts Council for Chautauqua County.  This program is funded and supported by the Local Capacity Building Initiative of the Arts in Education Program at the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA).

Through the grant, Johnny Tooley partnered with the school to teach “The Joy of Painting” technique made famous by artist Bob Ross.  The technique uses brushes, flat knives and specific stroke techniques to create landscape and seasonal paintings.

The pupils in grades 3 to 8 connected the paintings to their classroom learning in science, history, geography, English, and the arts.  The budding artists have taken field trips to view various landforms such as beaches, farms and forests.  They have compared and contrasted the various seasonal changes that take place in our area.  They have studied New York State from Niagara Falls to the Adirondacks and the Finger Lakes.  They have looked at the relationships between people and the environment, and they have written about the various seasons.

Johnny supports Joy Kurtz in creating her painting.

Johnny, an artist who is Special Projects Coordinator for TRC's Day Habilitation Programs, visited the classes three times to teach “The Joy of Painting” technique.  Between visits, pupils applied what they had learned to create acrylic paintings on canvas boards.

As part of his job, Johnny teaches art to people who have sustained a traumatic brain injury (TBI).  For one of his classes at Holy Family he arranged for Joy Kurtz, who participates in TRC’s Traumatic Brain Injury Program in Dunkirk, to come to the school and share her story and her artwork with the middle schoolers.  The pupils enjoyed listening to Joy and painting with her.  This connection added another dimension to the learning from the grant, as pupils were able to paint alongside a person with disabling conditions and to understand better the struggles Joy has in her life.  They also were able to see her as a caring, talented person with much to offer.

Johnny enjoyed teaching the Holy Family pupils, and he appreciated the opportunity to share with them the perspective of a person who has a traumatic brain injury.

“Painting with the TBI participants has been a wonderful experience for me.  To be able to bring a sense of accomplishment and pride for them, along with helping them progress through their injury using art, has been humbling,” Johnny said.  “Now to expose these young students to another form of art using acrylic paints and canvas, along with artist `tools’ that they haven't experienced, has been a treat for me.

“To watch their excitement and eagerness to learn has been inspiring.  In three short lessons of one hour each, I've been amazed at how quickly they have absorbed various techniques.  I would love to have been able to extend my experience with them to further develop these techniques, as I have seen some truly artistic talents emerge.  The best part is seeing them full of pride when they finish a painting, going from `I can't do that’ to `Look what I've done!’  It was also refreshing to witness them critique each other's work and tell others how well they have done or how much they liked their piece.

Johnny demonstrates a technique for creating a horizon.

“It just feels great to see how pleased they are when they realize what talent and capabilities they do have and the possibilities that are there.  I think it is wonderful that the Catholic Academy of the Holy Family applied for and received this grant to enhance their students’ cultural experiences and am blessed to have been the artist they chose to present it to them.”

TRC exhibited the Holy Family pupils' work at the Michael J. Raymond Center during the first week in May and held a reception for the artists.  Johnny said The Resource Center offered to exhibit the Holy Family pupils’ work and hold a reception for them as a way of giving back to the community.  In the past few years, individuals with disabilities at TRC have created artwork that has been exhibited in a number of local venues, and the community has been supportive of the disabled artists.

“They were very appreciative when they were given receptions for their exhibits and wanted to do the same for someone else,” Johnny said.  He added that holding the exhibit and reception “ties in with our hopes to continue to develop partnerships and/or collaborations with people/organizations/schools out in the community.”

The pupils’ artwork also was on display in the Wright Gallery at The Arts Council, located at 116 East Third Street in Jamestown, during May.