Art Field Trip to SF
Last week on Thur. and Fri., the classes of Art 2, AP Art, Independent Portfolio, and Advanced/Honors Art took field trips to the murals in the Clarion Alley and the Women's Building in San Francisco, as well as to the SF Museum Of Modern Art.
The exhibit on display at the MOMA that the classes went to see were the Henri Matisse (1869–1954) and Richard Diebenkorn (1922–1993) exhibit. Diebenkorn is an American modernist who was inspired by Matisse's post impressionist paintings. Both artists use an abstract or figurative style in many of their paintings.
Students also got the chance to walk around to see other artwork in the MOMA.
One of the main reasons the art classes go on the field trip is so that students can have the experience of seeing paintings in person instead of on a screen because the two are very different perspectives.
Art teacher Jessica Jurgens said, “I think it’s really important for students to get outside of the four walls of the classroom and see artwork outside of what they’re creating, I think they need to have that experience of connecting with art, whether it’s something they like or don’t like, but to have a response to it."
Art 2 and Independent Portfolio teacher Anne Scallon said the teachers chose these places for the field trip because Matisse and Diebenkorn are two of her favorite painters.
“It’s rare to see both of these artist’s work together and I really want students to see how artists of different generations learn from each other. I also want them looking at the murals in the mission to see the contrast between museum art & street art “high art and low art" and how art can relate to society on many different levels," said Scallon.
Anne Scallon and Jessica Jurgens
On the way back to Walnut Creek, students spoke about what parts of the trip they liked or didn't like and what their favorite pieces were.
Juniors and Advanced Art Honors students Dina Elmoussarrif and Taylor Brown both said something they enjoyed seeing were the Chuck Close portraits, especially up close at the MOMA.
Chuck Close portrait
When asked about her favorite part, senior Dani Fidelibus said, “I think either the alley that we first went to and exploring all the different types of art there, or being in the museum, I liked the 7th story the best, there were these really cool large paintings there.”
Advanced art student junior Lindsay Hack said, “I think a lot of the Matisse work was cool, I didn’t really like Diebenkorn cause he was kind of like a copy, I just felt like he was like a knock off version... But it was cool to see.”
Dina Elmoussarrif admiring the murals.
Elmoussarrif said "I think my favorite part was the murals."
“I liked how the murals were done by random people, but I do like going into museums and seeing things," said Brown.
Each student had their own perspective on the field trip but the general consensus was that it was a rewarding experience.
