MNPS’s art students and teachers put a lot of beauty into the world – and onto the walls of the district’s Support Hub offices at 2601 Bransford Ave. 
Board of Education members and other visitors got a chance to see a vibrant, diverse, eye-catching sampling of students’ work from across the district during a walkthrough Tuesday before the Board’s meeting.
The hallways on the third and fourth floors of the Support Hub (central office) feature art by students from more than 80 schools, said Allison Ross, coordinator of visual arts for the district.
"Our dedicated K-12 visual art teachers have inspired these students to explore their creativity, imagination and talents through our standards-based curriculum. Highlights include ceramic sculpture such as a whimsical banana phone and a student design based on historic Southern Face Jugs, a tradition that has been dated back to the 1840s or 1850s,” Ross said, noting recent MNPS investments in kilns and other resources to enhance ceramics instruction.
“Also included are several pieces made from reclaimed Southwest Airlines seat leather, which were on display over the school year in the Southwest Airlines concourse at BNA. This work was part of a partnership with Southwest Airlines, PENCIL, Turnip Green Creative Reuse and Arts in the Airport.”
Digital photography, weaving, painting, printmaking, whole-school collaborations, and foil embossing are also represented in the fantastic work students did throughout the 2021-2022 school year, Ross said. One piece on display at the Support Hub has a QR code that takes viewers to a stop-motion video created by students at Westmeade Elementary School through a federal Professional Development for Arts Educators grant.
As part of Director of Schools Dr. Adrienne Battle’s Every Student Known initiative, the Support Hub was redesigned in 2021 to line the hallways with student artwork that could be replaced annually to showcase the talents and creativity of the students of MNPS. This is the second rotation of artwork.
“These pieces show the incredible creativity, inspiration, ingenuity and skill of our art students and teachers,” Dr. Battle said. “We’re proud to display their creations and thrilled to have them brightening our workplace every day.”
Student Art Gallery
Take a look at a sampling of the beautiful work hung at the Support Hub.
