Unveiling of Sartell Metal Collabation

Sartell High School will be unveiling a metal installation, coordinated by artist Heidi Jeub, as an interdisciplinary collaborative effort between approximately 80 students. Since October, students from Photography, Mixed Media Art and Metal Fabrication classes have been putting their creative efforts, and muscle, into this metal tile installation, which will be installed at the entrance of the school.

Jeub, who graduated from Sartell in 1995, wanted to bring the various disciplines into the project as part of a residency funded by Central Minnesota Arts Board. The multi-discipline nature of the project allows students to see that art making can be a group effort, rather than just an individual’s effort. Each student was able to either create, critique or fabricate some aspect of the project. Teachers involved in the project include Joe Schulte, Jessica Boline, Nick Phillips, and Angie Heckman. Volunteer efforts of Cori Schneider, instigated this idea as part of the Art in Motion program, bringing art into the school.

The photography students took pictures of hundreds of students, editing their images into 9x9” tiles. They cropped and altered the images to create a cohesive look. The Mixed Media Students helped prepare the recycled aluminum tiles, which were then engraved with the photographs with a laser engraver, from SCSU. The metals fabrication class then created panels from recycled steel, that would hold the tiles in a grid formation. Students then helped drill and rivet the tiles to the steel panels.

This program is meant to increase awareness of the arts integrated into industrial arts programs in schools. The artist intends to provide a model of females in the industrial arts classes, while educating the students about the relevance of visual art in the world of fabrication and design. Jeub is a teaching artist as part of the CMAB’s Teaching Artist Roster program and COMPAS. Her medium is primarily painting and bookbinding, but prefers to customize residencies to the needs of the schools and student body.

The entire installation took approximately 3 weeks, and will be unveiled to the students on Wednesday, November 6, at 9:05am.