Bringing Art Education to the Table

In the foyer of Edgerton Elementary School in northeast Kalispell, Van Gogh’s “Starry Night” and “Sunflowers” meet M.C. Escher’s “Fishes and Scales” –– all on painted wooden lawn chairs. 

The painted chairs are the product of Edgerton Creative Arts, a program created by former educator Barb Anderson to help bring hands-on art education to the local school while raising funds for art supplies, which are often left out of tight school budgets. Through the initiative, each class at Edgerton partners with a local artist, who comes into the classroom to teach about a famous artist and guides students through painting a piece of furniture in the style of their subject. Each year, the furniture is auctioned off to the community, and the proceeds go back to Edgerton, where they are used to buy art supplies. This year’s online auction will take place from May 4 through May 14. 

“We want these kids to own art. That’s not something that we teach much anymore because it’s not tested, which is really, really sad,” Anderson said, discussing why she brought this program into the elementary school. 

A former teacher in the Kalispell Public Schools, Anderson said she frequently bought art supplies for her own classroom, as they weren’t covered by school budgets. With Edgerton Creative Arts, Anderson hopes to find a way not only give kids a creative outlet, but to use that outlet to keep the arts alive for years to come. While Edgerton Creative Arts was founded through seed money from the Kalispell Education Foundation back in 2018, it has operated self-sufficiently through the auction proceeds since then. 

Anderson said that students at the elementary school have not only been able to think creatively and make art –– they’ve also taken home knowledge about the art world that wouldn’t otherwise be covered during the school day.  

“The beauty of it is they can tell you all about Van Gogh now, these second graders,” Anderson said. “I was walking down the hall with these kids going to lunch, and this little first grader looked at this picture on the wall, and he looked at me he goes, ‘That’s so Monet, isn’t it?’ And looked at him and said, ‘What? What did you say?’”

Community members are invited to see the painted furniture in person at Edgerton Elementary School on May 4 from 5:30 – 7 p.m. Online bidding begins May 4 and ends May 14 through this link. 

More information can be found at www.smore.com/dwna8.