Pablo Picasso once said, ““Every child is an artist.”
That sentiment certainly rang true at the 34th Annual Diocesan Art Exhibition at St. Mary School Swormville. The exhibition was free and open to the public and ran May 13th, 14th, and 15th, from 6 - 8 pm. A total of 15 Western New York Catholic Schools participated with over 280 unique works of art on display throughout the St. Mary School Swormville hallways. The exhibition showcased a variety of mediums including painting, sculpture, mixed-media work, watercolors, pen and ink, cut paper, pastels, glass-work, paper mache, printmaking, & more. In addition, Francesca Mineo, a 4th grader at St. Mary School Swormville provided musical accompaniment for the opening reception on May 13th on her cello, and sweet treats were available in the school cafeteria for everyone’s enjoyment. Click here to see more photos from the opening reception.
St. Mary School art teacher, Mrs. Karen Genovese organized the show this year. She has taught at St. Mary School for 22 years and is the recent recipient of the “Golden Apple” award, which recognizes teachers in the Buffalo Diocese who go above and beyond in their school communities by living out the Catholic faith, exemplifying a growth mindset, and implementing creative instructional strategies to build student engagement. Mrs. Genovese had this to say about the Diocesan Art Show,
“I’m just so excited for all of the children to see their artwork on display. They work so hard and have so much creativity to share! Artwork can really be used to send a message, and so many of our students have something important to convey."
This event is endorsed by the Department of Catholic Schools and is a great opportunity to showcase the wonderful art programs in our WNY Catholic Schools. In an era where some schools have recently been forced to cut arts programming, Catholic Schools have remained staunch supporters. In recent years, school curricula in the US has shifted heavily toward common core subjects of reading and math, but art education & creative activities are some of the building blocks of child development. A child’s motor skills, language development, decision making skills, visual learning, inventiveness, and cultural awareness are all impacted by art education. Improved academic performance has also been linked to involvement in the arts. A report by Americans for the Arts states that young people who participate regularly in the arts are four times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement, to participate in a math and science fair or to win an award for writing an essay or poem than children who do not participate.
Congratulations to all of the students who had artwork chosen for the exhibition, all participants will receive certificates and ribbons. See below for a list of this year’s participating schools.
2024 Participating Schools:
• Catholic Academy of West Buffalo
• DeSales Catholic School
• Immaculate Conception School
• Nativity of Mary
• Nativity Of Our Lord
• Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament School
• Our Lady of Victory
• St. Amelia School
• St. Benedict School
• St. Christopher
• St. Gregory the Great
• St. John the Baptist Alden
• St. John Vianney School
• St. Mary School Swormville
• St. Peter & Paul School
• St. Mary's Elementary School, Lancaster