Middle schoolers at 219X condemn bullying with public art display
Middle school students from the New Venture Academy on Third Ave. in Morrisania used art to convey their message at Claremont Park on June 11th, that bullying is unacceptable.
Young people from ten schools around the city—two schools from each borough—used lunch tables from their schools as their canvases, to paint and draw depictions of issues that affect their communities, such as teenage pregnancy, gangs and violence, and civil and gay rights, as well as bullying. The artistically enhanced lunch tables will be on display through the summer at parks near each of the schools.
The public exhibition is part of a citywide project that kicked off in January, entitled A View From The Lunchroom: Students Bringing Issues To The Table. The program was organized by non-profit group Learning Through An Expanded Arts Program, a 35-year-old organization that teaches dance, music, visual arts and theater to kingerdarten-through-12th graders in city schools, and works with parents and teachers to help improve children’s education by tapping into their creative muses.
The middle schoolers at New Venture Academy, also known as 219X, hope their table will send a message that kids picking on other kids is a problem everyone should fight.
“Our issue was bullying,” said New Venture 6th-grader Abdoul Diallo, adding “There are a lot of issues of bullying around New York City and we wanted to change the fact.”
The public will be able to see New Venture’s colorful table at Claremont Park through August.
City schools chancellor Dennis M. Walcott congratulated all of the students at a public event at Union Square in Manhattan in May, saying the program “gives our students a citywide platform to showcase their artistic talents and generate awareness for important issues facing their communities.”
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Many renowned artists, including South Bronx graffiti artist Daze, met with students over the school semester, to discuss their work and the impact of public art.
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