An album courtesy of Kateri Konik
If you haven’t been to Brigg’s Public Library yet this month, you are in for quite a surprise. The whole place is festooned with paintings and drawings by elementary and middle school students in St. Johns and in Konan-Shi, Shiga Prefecture in Japan. They are on the walls, bulletin boards, end caps of the shelves and banners hanging from the ceiling.
This is the outcome of the 18th annual St. Johns – Konan Student Art Exchange, which is an enduring activity of the Friendship City agreement between the two cities. Every year the art teachers in St. Johns: Mrs. Brearley, Mrs. DenHerder, Mr. Fromson and Mr. McDonald (new this year) select artwork from their students to be displayed here and then sent to Konan-Shi where it will again be displayed alongside artwork from their Japanese counterparts.
It is fascinating to see the different styles of artwork from both school districts and to gain some knowledge of life in Japan by looking at their subject matter. (The St. Johns artwork has all been displayed with black construction paper serving as the “frame,” making it easier to differentiate which side of the Pacific Ocean the pictures are from.)
The annual exhibit is a great example of cooperation between agencies: St. Johns Public Schools; St. Joseph and St. Peter’s parochial schools; Konan-Shi schools; Briggs Public Library, the City of St. Johns, the Ovid-Elsie High School National Art Honor Society students who help hang and take down the art; the St. Johns-Konan Friendship Society which coordinates the program; and the Clinton County Arts Council (CCAC), the over-arching agency under which the program operates. CCAC is grateful to receive funds for operating support through competitive grants from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Make a point to stop in and see this intriguing exhibit on display through March 30. If you are inspired to travel to Japan, there is Goodwill Mission that goes from Michigan to Shiga (our sister state) every other year, and includes a home-stay with a Japanese family for 5 days. The Goodwill Mission is made up of Michigan citizens age 18 and over who enjoy new adventures. This year the participants will travel October 16 – 25. For more information on that trip, the sister state relationship or on our friendship city, go to www.mishiga.org.