Fair Grove High school’s art club has been working hard at games and during school hours to raise money in order to buy new and improved art equipment and products. All year they have been attending football and basketball games to face paint and sell homemade beanies. In school students may stop by the art room and purchase snacks, drinks and other treats for fifty cents to a dollar. Many students in art club also take Ms. Brown’s art classes and are very familiar with the struggle of not having enough paint or having to use poor brushes so art club is making a noticeable difference.

Co-president, Isabella Frieze, informs, “This year we hope to raise enough money to buy a new electric clay wheel for the high school art room. We want to put our money towards something that students after us can still enjoy and use to make art!”

“Last year it (the money raised) paid for our bus driver and gas to go to the Crystal Bridges art museum,” stated Ms. Brown. Art club took a field trip last year to Arkansas to see art in person instead of on a screen or in a book. “We chose to go there because they were showing contemporary art for a short time and I felt like it would be the only chance for kids from such a small town to go see real Picasso and Van Gogh,” added Brown.

With Christmas on it’s way art club decided to have a party and got together with lots of food from Subway’s sandwiches to Pizza Rolls and personal cheesecake cups. Brett Koerble, art clubs publicist, had attended, “I danced around and we threw gloop (Flarp) around but Isabella yelled at us for that.”

Taylor Sandridge, an art club member, who also went to the party on December 9th says that her favorite part was opening the secret santa gifts and seeing that she had gotten sketching supplies. All members had to buy another a $5 or under gift anonymously and properly wrap it, notebook paper thrown on the night before was specifically not allowed. Another member, Claire Van Zante, enjoyed the other fun activities there were to do such as the photo booth. “ I did a group picture and I wore a feather scarf and antlers. Then I dressed up my friends and took selfies with them,” she tells, “It was fun.”

“Well yeah, art is a very calming pass time that really calms the nerves. It distracts you from the problems at hand and gives you a chance to forget everything for a while.” A long time member of art club, Abbigayle Thompson, who is is a senior this year, “Of course I will miss art club.  It is a wonderful collection of students you can always count on and it’s a place where we can share interests and not let all of the social stigma deter us from making friends. Who wouldn’t miss all of that?”

“Art is one of the only creative classes or clubs offered in school. They improves deeper thoughts and critical thinking, and help kids that struggle in core classes,” Ms. Brown states, “It’s a proven fact that 40% of kids who take art classes or participate in art club do better in common cores, and 50% will do better in standardized testing. A left minded project will help right minded tasks.”