Art in the Village »

Natural Beauty

November 2 - December 9, 2011

USC Fisher Museum of Art is thrilled to present the first exhibition of Art in the Village, Natural Beauty. Art in the Village is a visual arts outreach program that provides quality art supplies to local schools and give students the opportunity to create art in the classroom to share it with the community. Natural Beauty includes artwork created by kindergarten through fifth grade students that attend nine local elementary schools. For this exhibition, our judges had to select just fifty works from 840 student submissions.

"Posing Beauty in African American Culture" is a photography exhibition at the USC Fisher Museum of Art based on how the theme of beauty continues to evolve and change visually in one culture. Beauty can be seen in all things around the world. In this theme, students were asked to look at the simple shapes and designs seen in nature and think about what makes them beautiful.

Natural Beauty invited students to push their imaginations to vividly illustrate what in nature is beautiful. Students were asked to think about what shapes and patterns they see in nature that inspire them. They were also asked what beautiful parts of nature they see around their own neighborhoods. We wanted the students to use their youthful creativity to depict interesting and detailed illustrations of their interpretation of beauty in nature.

These young artists exhibited their vast imagination yet with sophisticated creativity. They depicted meaningful stories to their artwork. Their artist statements are testament to their remarkable imaginations and demonstrate the personal reflections that influenced each student's creative process. Some students illustrated their scenic neighborhoods while some students illustrated scenes of wildlife. These students demonstrated a variety of unique and inspirational artwork--each expressing how nature is uniquely beautiful to them. Their vibrant and inspiring creations remind us to reflect and to remember how beautiful the world is around us.

The USC Fisher Museum of Art created Art in the Village to give local students the opportunity to create art in the classroom and share it with others in the community. Art in the Village supplies each school with paper and art supplies for students to utilize at no cost. By hosting the opening reception and award ceremony for every exhibition at the University Village, Art in the Village celebrates the artistic accomplishments of each student. Art in the Village is a partnership between the USC Fisher Museum of Art, the University Village Shopping Center, and the USC Family of Schools. It is sponsored in part by a grant from USC Neighborhood Outreach.