Making the ordinary extraordinary

Seventh-grade photographer Claire's interesting perspective on pencils won first place in the Show Your Colors art exhibit at the Bay Village Branch Library.

It was almost 2 p.m. on a cold Saturday afternoon and anticipation hung heavy in the air. Seventh and eighth grade students entered the library meeting room in hushed tones as they hurried from piece to piece, seeing which items were declared the best. Area artists Pat Sandy, Marge Widmar and Sharon Aunchman had freely given of their time and expertise earlier in the week to judge the artwork.

The event was the Show Your Colors Art Exhibit Reception, annually held at the Bay Village Branch of Cuyahoga County Public Library and generously funded by the Friends of the Bay Village Library. All students from the city that are in grades seven or eight are welcome to submit their pieces for the exhibit. It was really inspiring this year how the winners took ordinary items, looked at them with a different perspective and turned them into spectacular artwork.

The first-place winner was seventh-grader Claire from Bay Middle School, who took a photograph of pencils piled up randomly. We’ve all held these wooden objects innumerable times in our hands, never looking at them twice. With the simple shift in perspective from grabbing an everyday writing tool, to a powerful head-on view of color and purpose, this young artist gets right to the point. (Sorry, couldn’t help that one!)

Alex, the top winner in eighth grade, submitted a photograph of an outside spiral wooden staircase. The striking thing about this fairly ordinary scene is the interplay between all the slats of wood and the shadows. It has so much contrast between the light and the shadows – the lines are an utter explosion of beauty.

The first-place winning entry in the 3-D category is a wind chime suspended from a piece of driftwood. Seventh-grader Amelia artistically combined twine tied in macramé with beads, feathers, little driftwood pieces, ceramic bells and ceramic slat pieces to make a striking visual piece. The clincher for the judges was when we removed it from the display case and held it up, as it was intended. When the pieces touched each other, what heavenly sounds came forth!

The beauty of these and all of the rest of the original, clever pieces was enhanced at the March 8 reception by the performance of the Bay High School Honors Ensemble. Their time is much appreciated for providing such a beautiful, melodic backdrop to the reception honoring the student artists.

The creativity of all the artwork submitted in the exhibit is truly fabulous. I wish there were space to describe the beauty and uniqueness of each. If you were unable to attend the reception honoring these young artists, don’t worry – you haven’t yet missed out on the inspiration. All artwork will remain on display through the month of March in the display case and the Bay Village Library meeting room for perusal, when the room is not in use. Regular library hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Thursday; 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday; and 1-5 p.m. on Sunday. Stop in and experience the magic of ordinary turned extraordinary today!