During the online teaching experience, Swansons’ artwork never stopped! Some students watched my weekly tutorials, some students reflected on previous lessons, some students drew in their sketchbooks.

Here is a Slide Show of many of the works of art created since March 2020:

6th Grade Art  7th Grade Art   8th Grade Art

Beautiful Mother’s Day Artwork:

Distance Learning 2020:

On Canvas, There are over 80 art tutorials on How to Draw, How to Draw with Color, How to Draw Realistically, and now Painting. I have received numerous works of art and started using Instagram (swansonarts@swansonMSArts)  and Twitter (swansonMSArt) due to their amazing works of art. Here is a sample of the Admiral’s Artwork:

This year for Earth Day, Miles, a 6th Grader, created this work of art and submitted it on April 22nd:

The National Scholastics Art Awards 2020

The National Scholastics Art Awards 2019The National Scholastic Art Awards is the oldest art competition in the nation. Since 1923, visual art students have been awarded Gold Keys, Silver Keys and Honorable Mention on a Regional Level. The Gold Key artwork is submitted to New York for further jurying on a National Level. This year, the criteria for the competition included ages thirteen and up (7th-12th Grade). 

The Following Swanson Students won a Gold Key: Sarah A 8th, Koket D 8th, Zoe F 8th, Alex F 7th, Lizandro G 7th, Alexander G 7th, Lauren G 8th, Katarina I 8th(2), Eva J 8th(2), Peter K 7th, Natalyn R 8th, Brendan S 7th, Julia S 8th(2), Lanyi S 8th, Anne S(2,) Maya T(2), and Victoria W.

The Following Swanson Students won a Silver Key: Massimo D, Lizandro G, Elise N, Katherine S, and Maxwell W.

The Following Swanson Students won an Honorable Mention: Sheridan B, Jomara C, Koket D, Lucas D, Lauren G(2), Brinley H, Annika K, Camila N, Finn P, Julia S, and Erica W.

The Gold Key, Silver Key and Honorable Artwork were on display at Swanson during the month of March. The Award Ceremony will be at Kenmore’s Auditorium on Monday, March 2th starting at 6pm. Middle School will be announced first.

7th and 8th Graders painted 5 canvases for the Cafeteria:

         Art Opening November 20th, 2019

A hundred 7th and 8th Grade Visual Art Students created a portfolio on trifold display board. Family and friends came out to enjoy the artwork and light refreshments. Great event! Thanks!

Welcome Back!  Check out our Art Gallery 2019-20!

The National Scholastics Art Awards 2019

The National Scholastic Art Awards is the oldest art competition in the nation. Since 1923, visual art students have been awarded Gold Keys, Silver Keys and Honorable Mention on a Regional Level. The Gold Key artwork is submitted to New York for further jurying on a National Level. This year, competition changed the criteria from 7-12 Grades to thirteen and up. 

The Following Swanson Students won a Gold Key:Connor  (Jewelry) Celeste (Printmaking and Drawing) 2 awards Hannah (Drawing)Ellie  (Drawing)Hana  (Sculpture)Sara (Drawing) 2 awards Alexa  (Drawing)Virginia (Drawing)Allison (Drawing)Lucy (Drawing)Juliet (Digital) 2 awards Thayden (Drawing) Arad (Painting)Grace (Sculpture)Clara (Drawing)Kelly (Drawing) 2 awards Lexis (Painting)James (Drawing and Comic) 2 awards Ali (Drawing and Painting) 2 awards Ellie (Sculpture)Elizabeth (Drawing)Alexandra  (Drawing) 2 awards

The Following Swanson Students won a Silver Key: Lenka  (Sculpture)Lianne  (Drawing)Hana (Painting)Pia Cruz (Digital)Allison (Painting)Grace (Painting)Sarah (Drawing)

 The Following Swanson Students won an Honorable Mention:Hannah (Painting)Elise (Drawing)Clara (Printmaking)Victoria (Painting)Victoria (Sculpture)

The Gold Key and Silver Key Two Dimensional Artwork will be on display at the Central Library during the month of March. The Award Ceremony will be at Kenmore’s Auditorium on Monday, March 4th starting at 6pm. Middle School will be announced first.

Art Opening December 4th, 2018

Over a hundred 7th and 8th Grade Visual Art Students created a portfolio on trifold display board. Family and friends came out to enjoy the artwork and light refreshments. Great event! Thanks!

Congratulations to Kelly for winning first place in the Latino Youth Leadership Conference Poster Contest “My Roots Lead Me to the Future”

Beautifying Swanson

Over the summer, students came out and painted the Boys and Girls Bathrooms with Inspirational Quotes.

8th Grade Students Painted 5 Posters for the Cafeteria

Art Opening at Swanson

Here is an example of what to expect:

National Scholastic Art Awards 2018

Congratulations to both Maaru Higuchi and Sebastian Olmsted for winning a Silver Key on the National Level!

This year 48 of Swanson’s Visual Art students won an award from the National Scholastic Art Awards after submitting entries in several of the possible categories in January. The artwork will be on display in the library from March 15th-23rd. A Reception for the artwork will be Wednesday, March 21st from 6:30-7:30 in the library. 

The National Scholastic Art Awards is the oldest Visual Arts Competition, founded in 1923 by M. Robinson, to acknowledge the great achievements created by visual art students. On a Regional Level, students are awarded Honorable Mention, Silver Key and Gold Key. The Gold Key recipients will go to New York for further jurying for a National Award. Last year, a Swanson student won a Silver Key on the National Award Level. Congratulations, Visual Arts Admirals!

The Award Ceremony will be March 5th, 6:30 – 8pm, Washington-Lee High School auditorium.

Here are the results:

GOLD KEY:

Evan Bauer (Painting)

Juliet Gerensky-Greene (Digital Art)

Maaru Higuchi (Drawing & Illustration)

Caroline La Piana (Drawing & Illustration)

Sebastian Olmsted (Drawing & Illustration)

Sydney Polly (Printmaking)

Aidan Rodriguez (Ceramics & Glass)

Jana Smith-Perry (Drawing & Illustration)

Audrey Vizard (Mixed Media)

Marie Zenzie (Drawing & Illustration)

SILVER KEY:

Melanie Black (Printmaking)

Alicia Bravo Arduz (Drawing & Illustration)

Hannah Bruggeman-Ton (Drawing & Illustration)

John Crouch (Drawing & Illustration)

John Crouch (Ceramics & Glass)

Alexa Dembosky (Drawing & Illustration)

Ethan Dodini (Drawing & Illustration)

Lucy Flannery-Goodman (Sculpture)

Juliet Gerensky-Greene (Digital Art)

Katherine Heavner (Sculpture)

Mia Hindermann (Painting)

Mia Hindermann (Drawing & Illustration)

Amina Luvsanchultem (Sculpture)

Jantara Mccormick (Drawing & Illustration)

Sebastian Olmsted (Drawing & Illustration)

Maren O’neill (Drawing & Illustration)

Zoe Palmer (Painting)

Adrian Vega (Sculpture)

Alexandra Walitt (Drawing & Illustration)

Sophie Walter (Painting)

Marie Zenzie (Painting)

HONORABLE MENTION:

Nada Aniss (Sculpture)

Fiona Beardslee (Drawing & Illustration 2X)

Alicia Bravo Arduz (Drawing & Illustration)

Sara Dangmann (Drawing & Illustration)

Alexa Dembosky (Drawing & Illustration)

Charlotte Dennis (Painting)

EmmaClare Holloway (Printmaking)

Alexis Lee (Painting)

Amina Luvsanchultem (Drawing & Illustration)

Noura Lynch (Drawing & Illustration)

Isabelle Obey (Drawing & Illustration)

Sebastian Olmsted (Drawing & Illustration)

Emilia Ridgeway (Sculpture)

Aidan Rodriguez (Drawing & Illustration)

Caroline Storer (Sculpture)

Sophie Walter (Photography)

Congratulations to over 80 Swanson Art students featured at the Arlington Public Schools 2017 Middle School Art Exhibit!

The exhibit can be seen December 1, 2017 – January 17, 2018

7:45 am – 5:30pm and evenings during public meetings

Education Center First Floor Gallery

1426 N. Quincy Street

Arlington, VA

National Scholastic Art Awards 2017

The Award Ceremony will be Monday, March 6th at Washington Lee’s Auditorium at 6:30pm. All Gold Key art work will be on display at the Central Library for the month of March.

The deadline for the National Scholastic Art Awards was January 12th, 2016. Swanson’s Art Department submitted artwork in all of the categories: Drawing & Illustration, Painting, Mixed Media, Digital Art, Ceramics & Glass, Sculpture, Jewelry Making, and Fashion. The National Scholastic Art Awards is the oldest art competition in our Nation and was founded by ML Robinson in 1923. Seventh and Eight Graders are eligible to submit original works of art on a Regional Level. Students may win a Gold Key, Silver Key, or Honorable Mention. Gold Key winners submit their artwork for further jurying on the National Level. Here are the results:

GOLD KEY:

Madison Cooper (Ceramics & Glass)

Charlotte Dennis (Drawing)

Natalie Kerbel (Sculpture)

Miranda Kibler  2X (Drawing & Illustration)

Rhianna Kibler 2X (Drawing & Illustration)

Caroline LaPiana (Sculpture)

James Licato 2X (Sculpture)

Eugene Lim (Ceramics & Glass)

Amina Luvsanchultem (Sculpture (Drawing & Illustration)

Grace Lynch (Drawing & Illustration)

Katherine Marston (Drawing & Illustration)

Brenna Meehan (Drawing & Illustration)

Natalie Moreno (Comic Art) 2X(Drawing & Illustration)

Isabelle Obey (Ceramics and Glass)

Sebastian Olmsted 2X(Drawing & Illustration)

SILVER KEY:

Sophie Finkelstein (Drawing & Illustration) (Ceramics and Glass)

Alissa Rivero (Drawing & Illustration)

Kenzie Ryan (Drawing & Illustration)

Emilia Zapata (Sculpture)

HONORABLE MENTION:

Kelly Colbert (Drawing & Illustration)

Madaline Cox (Painting)

Katie Lowe (Digital Art)

Emilia Ridgeway (Drawing & Illustration)

Cat Sword (Sculpture) (Digital Art)

2017 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Literary and Visual Arts Contest

Nylah Panicker, Swanson’s 6th Grade, won 3rd place for the Visual Arts Contest

Demonstration in Charcoal

Here is a sample artwork by students using the technique~ Chiaroscuro (In Italian, it means “LightDark”). Chiaroscuro is the Classical Technique from the Renaissance to create an Illusion of Depth on a flat surface by identifying the light source. As the light hits the object, there is a highlight within the lights. The object will have a shadow edge, core shadow, reflection and core shadow. Using Vine Charcoal, Ms. Corcoran demonstrates how to use the materials~ toned paper, vine and compressed charcoal, chalk, kneaded erasers, and blending stumps.

Visual Art for DRAMA

The Visual Arts Department helps out with the Theatre Arts Department as needed. The Seventh and 8th Grade Visual Arts Department created this 5’x7′ foot mural for the Fall Event.

Ms. Corcoran’s ART HISTORY STAR

In Art History STAR, we took a break from learning about the Renaissance and the Baroque Era. So, we built Gingerbread trains, houses, and sweaters. Some students followed the kit while others chose their own design. Maybe we will do something like this around Valentine’s Day. It was a lot of fun!

Inside the Seven Seas

Inside the Seven Seas: The Seventh Graders painted over forty murals to decorate inside the Seven Seas. The students chose images of their team’s sea creatures: orcas, seahorses, narwhals, and manatees, and Ms. Corcoran helped sketch out the ideas. The students painted tempera on banners which were laminated. The murals are mounted in the hallways by team.

Congratulations 7th & 8th Graders who Exhibited their work at the 7th & 8th Grade Art Show!

Wednesday, December 7, 2016, 7:00 – 8:00 pm

Swanson Middle School Cafeteria

2016 Arlington County Middle School Art Exhibit

Reception: Wednesday, December 14, 2016,

6:30 – 8:00 pm

Exhibit Dates: December 1, 2016 –  January 4, 2017

Exhibit Hours: 7:45 am – 5:30pm

Education Center, First Floor Gallery, 1426 N. Quincy Street, Arlington

Art For The Seven Seas

The 8th Grade Visual Arts students have painted seven panels that will be mounted outside on the railings of theThe Seven Seas.  The students chose and created their own design and used acrylic paint. Some classes went outside with Ms. Corcoran to paint while others stayed inside. The cold weather set in, so the outside mural is still in progress. Soon, the other seven panels will be mounted. Come see what students have been working on to enhance the Seven Seas decor. Next Spring, Ms. Corcoran will continue to work with the PTA (TBA).