Students boost art skills while raising money for school programs

Woodbridge High School students are learning that their artistic talents can be used to better the community, thanks to a new partnership between the Lorton Arts Foundation (LAF) and the school’s Center for the Performing and Visual Arts (CFPA).

The collaboration with the foundation offers students a variety of opportunities for artistic development that is often coupled with fundraising activities or community awareness projects, such as LAF’s nine-week Master Class Series in visual arts called “Art for a Change.” Just recently, several CFPA students benefited from this professional artist lecture series that culminated in the production of student-created artist palettes. As part of the program, the palettes will soon be raffled off by the foundation, with all proceeds from the art sales returning to Woodbridge High School to fund future school projects.

“It has been an honor for the Lorton Arts Foundation to present its first in the Master Class Series in Visual Arts at Woodbridge Senior High,” says Sharon Mason, arts administrator for LAF. “We were delighted to find students with talent and skill who care deeply about visual arts.”

Marni Maree, a LAF member who volunteered as a guest artist at the school, says that the partnership is providing students with a wealth of artistic knowledge that is not easily taught as part of the traditional arts curriculum. “The Master Class Series for the palette project was a wonderful opportunity for high school artists to get a taste of what it is like to be an artist. From taking great pride in every detail of professionally presenting their work to learning how to take a compliment, the students learned so much more than artistic technique,” says Maree.

Other opportunities provided through the partnership include a Student Playwright Program where students can submit 20- to 30-minute one-act plays for possible inclusion in a LAF festival; an invitation to teachers to display their artwork at the LAF Heritage Center or the foundation’s administrative offices; and a multitude of chances for students to participate as artists and performers in LAF events.

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