Starry Night

By Mary Alice Garrett

This story originally appeared February 19, 2012 in The News Journal of Wilmington, Delaware.

NEWPORT -- The value of art in education is evident at Richey Elementary School.

For the first time in nine years, Richey has a full-time art teacher. Christina Bartnik is introducing all 403 students to famous artists and their techniques. In return, the students are turning out artwork beyond their grade levels.

All 63 fifth-graders combined to create a striking rendition of Vincent van Gogh's "Starry Night." Bartnik said it's a project usually done by middle-school pupils, but she believed the fifth-grade students could do it.

"I thought I would do a collaborative project where they would have to work together," she said.

She gave each child a piece of a "Starry Night" poster along with a 12- by 18-inch paper tile. The students used a grid to enlarge the image before painting the 64 tiles. Each child contributed one tile and Bartnik the 64th.

"I won't tell you which one it is," she said.

"The students were able to paint like a painter using strokes and mixing colors," Bartnik said. They learned to work together and adjust, especially when fitting together pieces.

It took five weeks of work with some youngsters giving up their lunch periods to finish the mural. Often they listened to classical music while painting.

All the students were thrilled by the outcome and enjoyed a sense of pride in the finished product.

Madison Reed, 10, said he learned he could paint "like one of the artists."

"I feel proud of the way it looks in the lobby," said Luis Castillo, 11. "The mural almost looks like the real 'Starry Night.' "

Hunter Ruff, also 11, said the project has inspired him to become either an artist or architect.

"It runs in my family," he said. "We're all really good draw-ers."

"It was challenging, but it came out looking awesome," concluded Selena Almodovar, 11.

A graduate of the Moore College of Art and Design and Neumann University, Bartnik began her teaching career at Richey last fall. She next will introduce three-dimensional projects and animation to the fifth-graders "to enhance their personal drawings."

"Some art teachers give you things that you have to do," said Grace Kwiatkowski, 10. "Miss Bartnik has really cool projects. She is the best teacher I've ever had."

"This is the most fun thing we've done in art class in five years I've been in this school," said 10-year-old Aanchal Burmi. "I liked the whole thing. We mixed a lot of paints and used real camel hair brushes. I liked fitting it in."