Behind the Scenes: Art Projects for Celebrate Bush: Eras

After spending much of the 2000s as a benefit for faculty compensation, the benefit shifted to supporting financial aid in 2014 at the behest of Head of School Frank Magusin in his final year as Head. Frank was committed to supporting financial aid and equity and inclusion at Bush, and the school continues to be committed to those values to this day, as it has throughout its history. In 2014, the financial aid budget was $2.3 million, supporting 110 students, or 18.5% of the student body. Since 2014, the financial aid budget has more than doubled to $4.8 million this year, supporting 153 students, or 22% of the student body.

Below are some sneak peeks of the Lower School class art projects in progress this year, all supporting financial aid at The Bush School. The finalized projects will be available for view at our Coffee and Art Walk this Friday, March 1 from 8:00-10:00 a.m., Register for your online bidding account by clicking “Get Started” and you can start bidding on Friday, March 1 at 8:00 a.m.

Special thanks to all our class art volunteers and especially our Class Art Co-Chairs Suzanna Westhagen and Judi Yates, who have been leading these projects for over six years! Thank you for bringing these incredible projects to life.

Kindergarten students spend the year learning what makes each of them unique. So it’s fitting that kids created their own snowflakes—each one unlike any other. Students selected three favorite shapes from a tremendous variety of geometric snowflakes, laser cut from thin sheets of wood. Next, each child painted an individual background square, then stacked their chosen snowflakes on top. Parent and artist Forest Dickey tiled all this art into two arrangements, one for each class. His inspiration from the project came from the story of "Snowflake Bentley," a scientist, artist and farmer who developed a technique for studying and photographing snowflakes (he's also the subject of a Caldecott Award–winning book). The result of all this hard work is part nature, part folk art, and absolutely a reflection of the Class of 2036.

Gorgeous flywheel-like patterns can be created by dipping strings in paint and then running them through a pressed card. In groups of four, First Grade students each chose a color to work with, then dipped the strings in paint and made four unique string art cards with four different colors in them. The colors they chose represented different Bush core values, such as trust, collaboration, and inclusivity.

The layering of colors and individual forms creates a beautiful effect, reflecting the magic created by this community of budding artists, scholars, and leaders. As colors blend, feather, and delight, the thought-provoking visual takes on as many forms as the imagination allows. It evokes the joy and wonder of First Grade learners, capturing the movement, curiosity, and experimentation that mark this wonderful time in their Lower School journey. Bringing a delightful pop of color to your home, this artwork will be a cherished reminder of the Class of 2035’s joyful journey together.

In celebration of The Bush School Centennial, Threads of Reflection brings to life the school’s mission, vision and values through a blend of artistic mediums and thematic exploration. Students learned the art of blind contour drawing, a technique that focuses an artist’s attention on what they are actually seeing and experiencing. Students alternated the role of ‘artist’ and ‘model’ during the session, creating pen-and-ink portraits of one another using one continuous line; looking only at their partner and not at the paper. Their drawings were digitized, transferred onto the wood using a Polycrylic paint, and finally traced with an acrylic fine tip paint pen for an extra pop. Students then collaborated on finger knitting with wool yarn, added onto a mirror to complete the mixed media project. 

As a testament to The Bush School's enduring legacy, "Threads of Reflection" is outfitted with hardware fittings that allow it to be installed in many different configurations. As an adjustable art piece, it can adapt perfectly in any room to approach conversations about identity, community, and how we can come together to weave the fabric of a more compassionate and interconnected world.

 

In this whimsical art project, Third Grade students embarked on a creative journey using oven-baked clay to bring fictional characters to life. With boundless imagination as their guide, they molded and shaped the clay with their hands, infusing each creation with a unique personality and naturally, a story. Through their playful expressions and quirky features, these characters became vessels for the students to convey their wildest ideas. The students were steadfast in the direction of their pieces, needing little guidance. From mischievous monsters to heroic adventurers, each face captured the essence of Third Grade creativity, symbolizing the limitless possibilities of young imagination at play.  Seen together, the character faces are mounted in a 36x36 plexiglass shadow box on natural linen.

Fourth Grade students, with the help of parent and artist Forest Dickey, fused individual painting styles and techniques into one stunning diptych, a nod to how it is our collective individualism that makes up the vibrancy of the Bush community as a whole. The beautiful rendering of the Puget Sound and Olympic mountains is etched into Maple plywood where fourth graders used acrylic paints to create a serene image of our local environment. Each framed piece measures 22" x 29" and is sure to be a standout in any space.

Time Stamp explores the ways we measure the eras of time in our home town, Seattle. Each student carved a unique stamp to symbolize some element of their brief time in this place. Many students chose elements of our world that have inhabited this place since time immemorial, or before memory, such as the western red cedar, the orca, and the salmon. Others were drawn to elements that signify important moments in our city’s past, such as the Space Needle or the Kraken. Still others chose images that were more personal, such as a dragon to mark the recent Lunar New Year, and even a symbol of The Bush School. A grid was created by stamps of tree rings. These tree rings reference the passing of time in the natural world all around us. Each block of wood was charred, burning away softer wood and revealing rings of harder wood that were then inked and stamped to create a parque-style structure on our canvas. Within this structure, Fifth Grade students’ stamps are nestled, creating an organized, but organic matrix of memory.