Videos: Middle School Students Murals Unveiled

Earlier this afternoon [May 18], the Minister of Education Dame Jennifer Smith unveiled two murals at the Chewstick Neo Griot Lounge. The murals were painted/designed by LaVerne Richardson and Cherie Richardson and painted by 40 of the Island’s Middle School students.

Dame Jennifer said, “You will know that I am a firm believer in the benefits of arts in education. I know that exposure to the arts develops self-esteem, self-expression and critical thinking skills among our children. Too often, the value of our children involvement in the arts is undervalued.”

“The cultural arts enrich learning. When children learn to appreciate form and color… and the importance of fashioning their own images of the world around them, they achieve greater self-confidence and enhance their desire for creative exploration.”

“So, today is a special day because today, we recognise the talents, potential and immense promise of our public school students,” said the Minister.

Dame Jennifer’s full remarks follow below:

Good afternoon students, teachers, artists and creators in all mediums, including the members of the media.

I must say a special Thank You to the members of Chewstick Foundation for agreeing to accept the creative efforts of our students on the occasion of the first Middle School Summit. To Gavin Smith and Chewstick, thank you for opening your doors to us on this exceptional occasion.

Ladies and gentlemen, you know that I am a passionate supporter of the arts in all its forms, so days like today are extra special to me.

There’s no denying that the arts have a unifying effect on us as individuals and today, we are tangibly demonstrating that unification, with this partnership between the Ministry of Education, our students, a creative community organization (Chewstick) and two talented artists – LaVerne Richardson and Cherie Richardson.

You will know that I am a firm believer in the benefits of arts in education. I know that exposure to the arts develops self-esteem, self-expression and critical thinking skills among our children. Too often, the value of our children involvement in the arts is undervalued.

The cultural arts enrich learning. When children learn to appreciate form and color… and the importance of fashioning their own images of the world around them, they achieve greater self-confidence and enhance their desire for creative exploration.

So, today is a special day because today, we recognise the talents, potential and immense promise of our public school students.

On behalf of the Ministry of Education, I am thrilled to unveil two magnificent murals that were created with the help of accomplished local artists Cherie Richardson, LaVerne Richardson and about 40 middle school students.

The story behind the creation of the two murals is also inspiring. On 1st April, the Ministry hosted the first ever “Walk it Out” Middle School Summit.

All the male students travelled to Warwick Camp and the female students to Bermuda College for a day-long retreat that included a series of personal presentations aimed at igniting their passion to dream big.

The overall intent of the “Walk it Out” event was to make an impact on the thinking of our students, through life stories, interaction with role models and exposure to activities that would help them set goals and make the right life choices.
Our role models included a host of individuals from all spheres of life – sports people, business professionals, chefs, managers, musicians – and yes the artists and Chewstick members you see behind me were participants.

One of the activities that took place at the Bermuda College was the creation of these two murals. The students dived in with enthusiasm, expressing themselves just as vibrantly as the colours in these two paintings demonstrate.

From the Ministry’s standpoint the day was a resounding success for so many reasons. Students had an opportunity to see that Bermuda has some very progressive, unique and talented individuals making a difference on our Island – positive role models like Gavin, Talib, Deidre, Cherie and LaVerne.

So, before I ask Gavin Smith to say a few words on behalf of Chewstick, I want to highlight another significant aspect of today’s event.

It is no coincidence that the Ministry chose to donate these murals to the Chewstick Foundation. We wanted to embrace and encourage Chewstick’s great grass roots work to transform North Hamilton.

They have embarked on a bold mission to unify this community by encouraging a wider awareness, appreciation and acceptance of each other as individuals.

Gavin and his team plan to revitalize this area into a visually stimulating and vibrant space where members of the community can come to freely express themselves in an open and creative manner.

And thanks to the foresight and efforts of Mrs. Deborah Thomas Gilkes, Activity Coordinator for the Walk it Out girls session – we are delighted to donate these murals to the Chewstick Foundation to form the foundation of what I believe will become their own visual arts collection.

I understand that Chewstick plans to showcase other artists on a rotational basis.

The Ministry of Education is pleased to offer you support as you seek to revitalise this area and spread the importance of self-expression through the cultural arts.

I now invite Gavin Smith to say a few words.

Thank you.

#Artists

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