The Muralists: Two 8th-Graders Add their Creative Touch to School Walls
My best friend Emily R. and I have
been painting murals around the St.
Johnsbury School.
The first was dedicated to our 7/8
team, Team Pack. It‘s an image with a
wolf and trees, along with the teachers‘ names. We had originally hung
up enough paper to probably cover
most of the wall. But the fire code was
broken, we tore that down, and were
given permission to paint the wall.
After that mural was completed,
the school‘s guidance counselor, Mr.
O‘Farrell, approached us and asked
us to do something for him. His plan
was a painting right across from his
office: something that would inspire
and encourage the concept of high
school and college. And so, we
agreed.
The design is a square with a banner above it; local schools are on
each of the seven flags. Colorful bubbles were painted around the inner
perimeter. In the middle, large letters
read, ―Learn; Life.‖ The meaning behind these words is to continue your
education in some way. When you‘re
going through middle and high school,
you‘re learning and before you think
it‘s done – hence the semicolon – you
have your live sitting in front of you. In
that life, you can go to whatever college you please and go into whatever
field of work you want.
Aside from the explanation, painting can be fun but also nervewracking. This thing you‘re creating is
going to be on the wall for a very long
time. When you are going over the
same black line, trying to get it as
straight as possible while maintaining
the width of it, you get anxious. When
people walk past and ask why you‘re
allowed to do this, why isn‘t it done,
when will it be done, don‘t you have
class , etc., you get a little annoyed.
That said, it was a fun experience
for us.
By Sidney G.
Catamount Staff Reporter
Emily R. (left) and Sidney G. sit in
front of their “Learn; Life” mural.
Student art by 1st-graders
Devlin (far left), Aiden (middle)
and Ashlyn (right).
A2VT Delights Students at Fuller Hall
On Feb. 3, Vermont-based African
hip-hop group A2VT performed two
shows for hundreds of area students
at St. Johnsbury Academy‘s Fuller
Hall. The shows were presented by
Catamount Arts, as part of its
schooltime series of daytime shows.
The five-piece group, which is
based in Winooski, delivered a compelling performance featuring infectious songs, stellar dance moves and
a positive message. Students from
eight area schools – including St.
nd
8 Johnsbury School students from 2 ,
3rd and middle school grades – attended the shows, which ended with
students hopping up on stage to
dance with the group.
To see live videos of ―Winooski
My Town‖ and ―Let‘s Get Together‖
from Fuller Hall, go online to https://
www.youtube.com/channel/
UCdYZsT02mr5QreGATedB2tg.
The fourth and final Catamount
Arts schooltime show is on April 6,
when lauded local band the Kingdom
All-Stars perform two shows at 10:30
a.m. and 1 p.m. at Fuller Hall.