SCS seeks an artist for a school mural

SHARON — Sharon has some of the most luxuriant scenery to be found anywhere. Generations of artists have been drawn to the town and its environs, fueled by inspiration and settling into studios to join a vibrant art scene.

Similarly inspired, Sharon Center School (SCS) art teacher Lilly Rand Barnett, since coming to Sharon nine years ago, resolved to enhance the SCS art program, tirelessly promoting the idea of a mural to brighten a public-facing blank surface on the school building’s exterior.

“I have come to love the program I’ve built,” Barnett said, responding to questions on Wednesday, April 26, “because it incorporates the rich cultural connections in the community where we live.” She added that class sizes are perfect for the art program where the needs of each student can be addressed and nurtured.

The mural project represents the start of a multi-year art upgrade at SCS, Barnett said. Students will participate in the project and learn from a professional artist how a mural is created. Once an artist has been selected, a team of students, teachers, administrators and residents will confer with the artist to devise a plan for student involvement and structure the project.

“We are looking for an artist who is familiar with our town to create a mural to bring color and life to the exterior of our school building. The mural should reflect a spirit of creativity, illustrating the artist’s vision of the school relative to a broad theme of ‘Garden,’”Barnett said.

“How you choose to respond to this theme is entirely up to you,” according to a “Call for Artists” notice prepared by the committee for distribution to Sharon’s community of artists.

“I am hoping that in the future, my students will send their children here and point to the work they were a part of in their time at SCS,” Barnett said.

Funding for the project has been provided by the town in the form of a $15,000 grant to cover all materials and the artist’s fee.

Artists are asked to submit proposals before Monday, June 5, including a preliminary sketch, a statement detailing interest in the project and ideas for how it would be executed. The mural itself will be painted by the artist alone.

At present, the call indicates that the committee is accepting only proposals from artists local to Sharon, but this could include an artist who might be originally from Sharon or living in town now or perhaps living in the area with ties to the Sharon community.

For more information, artists are invited to contact Lilly Barnett by phone at 860-309-8226 or at lbarnett@sharoncenterschool.org.