Arts + Re-Creation Events Begin
Posted 04/04/2013 02:19PM

Arts + Re-Creation Show

Kicks Off with Visiting Artists

The environmentally inspired Arts + Re-Creation exhibition kicked off April 3 with two presentations to Upper School students and faculty that explored themes of art, nature and biodiversity.

Steve TobinSculptor Steve Tobin, best known for the Trinity Root, a Sept. 11 memorial installed at Wall Street and Broadway, in New York City, spoke to Penn Charter 10th, 11th and 12th grade students about his art.

Tobin, who has worked in 25 countries, often derives his sculptures from nature: the forest floor, termite mounds, tree roots. He cast the bronze Trinity Root from the stump and root structure of the fallen sycamore tree that shielded nearby St. Paul's Chapel from falling debris at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11.

"I felt like it was such a sacred project," Tobin said, "that I never made a piece of bronze again."

Tobin is a self-declared science and math nerd who studied theoretical mathematics in college. "Maybe not studying art was good," he said, "because I always feel like a student."

Doug Tallamy, a professor and chair of the Department of EntomologyDoug Tallamy and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, spoke to ninth grade students, who have been studying biodiversity in Biology and contributing to the  "Beastiary" project in Foundation Arts. 

Tallamy is the author of Bringing Nature Home, which makes a case for native gardening. He encouraged students to think of gardens and suburban landscapes as playing a critical ecological role in sustaining plants and animals that were once common throughout the U.S.

The works exhibited during the Arts + Re-Creation show, April 12-19, focus on environmental themes and reflect awareness, thoughtful consumption and innovative repurposing of materials. Environmentally inspired artwork created by students in all divisions also will be on display in and around the exhibition space. Proceeds from the sale of artwork and sponsor support will benefit a PC Visiting Artist Fund and an Environmentally Sustainable Fund to support PC "green" initiatives. Details about the show and opening reception.