Butler Art Institute provides training in Liberty after art cuts

LIBERTY

At his desk in Joanne Sura’s 4th-grade classroom at E.J. Blott Elementary School Friday, Isaiah Short was very much into his art.

Carefully, he cut a word from a vocabulary list.

“Is that ‘portrait’?” he double-checked. It was. So he glued it onto the page in his new notebook next to the picture of the white dog with the ring around its eye sitting — no, posing — next to a basket.

It was a picture of a painting, actually. To be more specific, not just any painting. It was a portrait. The difference? A portrait is a picture of a person or an animal posing.

Isaiah, 10, was completing his first art lesson from the Butler Institute of American Art’s Good Neighbors program.

Twice a month, docents from the Butler come in to give formal instruction to four E.J. Blott fourth-grade classes — two each trip.

“The Butler writes a grant to assist schools like Liberty, where they’ve had to cut back on art,” explained docent Sharon Diehl.

“This is a way to get formal art instruction,” said principal Mike Palmer.

In Sura’s room, one of two that received visits Friday, docent Donna Cooper led students in an hour’s lesson that included a survey to determine what they already know: Vertical lines make you feel restless, peaceful, or strong and still? “One, two, three, circle!” she said.

Read more about the art training in Saturday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.