It is a school’s responsibility to open up the student’s minds to different possibilities. Art shows are just as important as sports events, assemblies, and academic activities. It can help students to discover their hidden talents or try something they have never seen or tried before. Art shows contribute a lot to the total development of the student. The thing with art is that the more it is appreciated the more the artist will be encouraged to do better and learn more. Organizing a show to display students’ amazing artwork is a great way to appreciate the student’s skills and encourage them to enhance those skills. However, it isn’t easy to organize an art show. There are many things on the checklist and also there is also an urge to host a show no one else has. If you are hosting an art show for the first time or are out of ideas for the upcoming event, we have you covered. Try some of our cool art show ideas for elementary schools to spice up your art show.
Why organize art shows?
Just like other extra-curricular activities, an art show might seem like a nuisance but it isn’t. As teachers, you certainly want your kids to discover their own talents, try new things, and get appreciated for it. This is exactly what an Art display can do for you.
Helps children explore their hidden talents
We have seen many people shift their careers after they have completed their degrees and pursued art. One main reason for this to happen is that the children were unaware of their talent and the bliss of creating something when they were young. By organizing art shows you can give students a chance to see if they have what it takes to be an artist. If this skill is identified when they are young, they can take steps that will put them on a path to becoming an artist and also earning from their art.
Students feel like their skills are being encouraged
Kids are always trying to do new things. They are very fickle-minded and would be always excited to learn and try new things. This is actually a very good quality that most children have. Sadly as we grow older we tend to find comfort in doing the things we are familiar with. So why not let your kids know that you appreciate them trying new things? A good way to show your appreciation and encouragement is by hosting art shows and showcasing their talent to more people.
An opportunity for students to learn more
Learning from peers is one of the best ways to learn. Seeing other kids use different materials or styles for their artwork can be a good learning experience for the kids.
An eye opener for parents
Children these days don’t talk a lot with their parents, so an art show could also be a great eye opener for the parents as well. It would give them a chance to see what their kid is capable of.
Expand the kid’s horizon
Art is vast. There are no limitations to what can be created. A student might be well versed with using normal water colors but seeing an artwork created with coffee or markers or oil paint will open their mind to new ideas.
Collaborative art displays enhance teamwork
You can also try to do some collaborative artwork. This is a good way to help students learn how to respect each other’s opinions and ideas and come up with a creative solution as a team.
How to organize an art show in school?
Step 1: Collect artworks
The first thing you need to do is collect artworks. You can organize occasional competitions as part of extracurricular activities and use the winner’s artwork for display. Otherwise, you can ask each student to submit at least one piece of artwork for the show.
Step 2: Decide the venue
Depending upon the number of artworks you have collected you can select the art room or a multi-purpose room or a large hall inside or outside the school. While selecting the venue, choose the one with ample natural light. Artworks look beautiful with natural light. If this is not possible, then install good lighting for all artworks.
Seek permissions and send invites
Explain your plan to the management and seek permission from them. Then you can design pretty invites. You being an art teacher, designing an invitation should be a piece of cake. However, if you are not very tech savvy you can use free online tools like Canva to design it. Send invitations to the entire school staff and students, the parents and maybe some local artists as well.
Find volunteers
You will certainly need some student or parent volunteers to help you out with the whole process and also while the show is going on. See if you can find any help from senior-grade students for your art show.
Arrange everything
Arrange your displays in an aesthetic manner. Make sure you install some sign boards for easy navigation. If you can arrange some music for the event that would be great.
Cool ideas to host a school art show
Bulletin board paper attached to the school board is a very common way of showcasing student work. Why not try something unique? Here are some cool ideas to help you out.
Use multiple rooms with different themes
If you can manage multiple rooms you can decide on a theme for each room. For example, Art history. You can educate the students about art history during the art class and then give them some projects that you can display in this room. Similarly, you can invite guest speakers in school to educate and inspire them to learn more. Help them create something related to the theme you taught to display it in different rooms.
Artwork chandelier
Attaching artwork on a board is boring. But a hanging artwork? Sounds cool right? You can create a small or big chandelier and hang different artwork from top to bottom. If you want to keep things simple, you can just hang work done by your students vertically to some strings.
Display standees
Display panels or standees can be used to display artwork. Just pick the drawings give a heading to the panel and stick your student’s art pieces there. You can simply use some glue drops or double-sided tape to attach the drawings to the strings.
Invite a street artist
You don’t need to limit the displays to just students’ work. You can invite some local artists or street artists to showcase their skills in front of an audience. Your students, fellow teachers, and even parents would love to watch live painting. Moreover, students can get feedback from the artist to improve their skills.
Install a mural wall to be painted by visitors
Another great idea is to install a big mural wall on the venue. Keep it uncolored and let the visitors paint it as they like. It would be a fun place for the visitors to enjoy art while they are watching some stunning pieces by your students.
Install unique selfie or photo spots
If someone is on your art show they have to post it on their Instagram story or share it with their friends on snap chat. That is the norm these days. So make it easy for them to create beautiful stories. You must have seen many event managers install a frame or some giant wings and other mascots or artistic backgrounds to click pictures. You can do that too. It is not very difficult to DIY it either. Alternatively, you can hire some school show organizing companies to do all the arrangements for you.
Art with Scraps
Painting with art supplies is great but creating art out of scraps and rubbish is more challenging. You can hold an activity in class to encourage students to create art pieces with scrap papers and other rubbish items. Display it during the art show.
Mosaic Art pieces
Have you seen how small pieces of colored tiles are used to create bigger images like flowers and sceneries? This is what we call the mosaic art technique. You can help your students learn this technique using colored paper from waste magazines and newspapers.
Impromptu drawing contest for families
A fun contest amidst the show would bring a lot of excitement and engagement. You can ask other classroom teachers or parents to join the contest. Give them some supplies and ask them to draw something on the spot. Allow students to join this fun contest too. Display all artworks to appreciate everyone’s participation.
Use color schemes to make your display attractive
Randomly placing some art pieces together might look nice, but a color scheme or pattern is more eye-catching. You can design a wall with some color schemes or patterns. For example, you can make a rainbow using different art pieces.
Upload images to the school community
If your school maintains a blog post or has a school community you can share photos of the show there. People enjoy revisiting good memories. You might even publish them in the school magazine. I have been there, it is such a proud moment to see yourself in the school magazine. The kids will love it for sure.
Wrapping up
As art teachers, you have a huge responsibility of including art in the student’s life. Art needs encouragement and appreciation. Make sure you appreciate whatever your students create in the classroom as well as for the art show. Plan the art show well in advance to ensure proper execution of the strategy. Help students who lack the skill but are really interested in art. If there are kids who have no interest in art then try introducing them to different art techniques, there would definitely be something that is awe-inspiring for them.
