Elementary, High-School Students to Visit UA’s Paul R. Jones Gallery

K-12 students visit the Paul R. Jones Gallery of Art.
K-12 students visit the Paul R. Jones Gallery of Art.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Approximately 50 students from two Tuscaloosa schools will visit The University of Alabama’s Paul R. Jones Gallery of Art during October as part of the gallery’s K-12 Fellows Program.

Students from University Place Elementary School and Paul W. Bryant High School will view a selection of works from the Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art that focuses on the themes of identity and the civil rights movement.

The exhibit, “Noble Vision: A Collaboration between University Place Elementary School, Paul W. Bryant High School, and the Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art,” opens Oct. 5 and will be displayed through Nov. 20.

The Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art’s K-12 Fellowship Program, established in 2014, works with Tuscaloosa City Schools in an active program of community engagement.

The program provides support for teachers to bring students to the gallery, offers curricular assistance through the placement of UA student interns in K-12 classrooms, and hosts a showcase of work—inspired by the collection—by K-12 students at the gallery at the end of the fellowship cycle.

This year, students visiting the gallery will experience photographs, paintings and prints by leading contemporary artists including Margaret Burroughs, William J. Anderson, Betye Saar, Dawoud Bey, Clarissa Sligh and Ming Murray Smith.

Natalie Roig, a 2015 K-12 Fellow, will bring her photography class from Paul W. Bryant High School to the gallery Oct. 21. Her goal is to encourage students to not only experience art photography generally, but also to explore professional standards in the field.

“I hope the students start looking at the world through a photographer’s eye, looking at details, noticing things that are usually overlooked and tying details together,” Roig said.

She will encourage the students to explore their own skills and, from there, create their own photographs that will “show people the world through their own eyes.”

Rachel White, a fourth grade teacher at University Place Elementary School, will bring a group of University Place students to the gallery Oct. 14. White’s class will study the civil rights movement during October and November and will use the Jones artwork to provide a tangible, community-based foundation for their study.

Brian Rose, assistant principal at University Place, said his school’s collaboration with the Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art exemplifies the school’s commitment to Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics, or STEAM, education.

“As a STEAM school, we’re always looking for projects that promote cross-curricular instruction and that have local tie-ins or connections that can help our students access and understand complex concepts,” Rose said.

The gallery honors the late Paul R. Jones who, during his lifetime, amassed one of the largest collections of African-American art in the world. The Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art at UA includes more than 2,100 works valued at $10.3 million, which Jones donated to UA in 2008.

The Paul R. Jones Gallery is located at 2308 6th St. in downtown Tuscaloosa. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the first Friday of every month from noon to 8 p.m.

The Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art is part of UA’s College of Arts and Sciences, the University’s largest division and the largest liberal arts college in the state. Students from the College have won numerous national awards including Rhodes Scholarships, Goldwater Scholarships and Fulbright Scholarships.

Contact

Stephanie Kirkland, communications specialist, College of Arts and Sciences, 205/348-8539, stephanie.kirkland@ua.edu

Source

Lucy Curzon, lcurzon@as.ua.edu