Orcutt Academy High School (OAHS) students are required to perform several hours of community service each semester, explained OAHS Art Teacher Dona Kintzi, a requirement her students approached this year with all the creativity of burgeoning young artists. Kintzi’s students painted more than 300 bowls for the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County’s Empty Bowls events. Since that project, the relationship bloomed into an end-of-year project that saw many students working more than their required hours of service, she explained.
The students collaborated on a mural to hang in the Foodbank’s repacking area, where volunteers—including OAHS and other local high school students—help sort large lots of food into smaller portions according to health and safety standards. The mural depicts a fresh produce display, a scene students carefully labored over for weeks, Kintzi said.
“They came in before school, at lunch, after school, and even after graduation, they spent two whole days in there with me working on it,” she said. “I mean, it’s a lot of work; you have to prime it, put down layers, put in your highlights, the lowlights, make sure you have proper perspective, and make it dimensional.”
The art class received a request for the mural from the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County’s Development Manager Judith Monte, who told the Sun that she was impressed by the skills and output of the young artists when they contributed to the Empty Bowls benefits in both Santa Maria and Lompoc, donating those 300 custom-painted bowls with the help of an Orcutt Children’s Art Foundation grant. The Foodbank’s renovating its repacking area, Monte explained, which will be indoors and better suited for volunteers, a perfect place for a hand-painted mural.
The renovation won’t be complete until August, Monte said, but the mural is currently showing in the Foodbank’s warehouse where staff, students, and other volunteers can see it.
The project’s been a dynamic part of some of her students’ school year, Kintzi said, and for some, an affirming sendoff as they graduate.
“It gives them value and a sense of connection with their community, and they realize that they are vital,” she said. “They feel respected and that people love and value what they are giving back.”
The mural was completed on campus in Kintzi’s classroom where the students got to collaborate, troubleshoot, and complement each other’s work, Kintzi explained. She used the project as an opportunity to teach the group how to execute a good mural, from making sure the colors flow pleasantly through the piece to painting to an audience, and imagining what someone else would prefer.
“One thing we want them to take away is this is real life learning,” she said. “This is something they can do after they graduate and go out and make the world what they want it to be.”
For the Foodbank, a pleasant place to repack is just another way to draw in more volunteers and feed more people in the community. More money can go to food and essentials if the budget isn’t wasted on a mass-produced art piece, Monte explained.
The kids were initially inspired by a photo snapped of a well-stocked produce table at one of the Foodbank’s farmers’ market events, Kintzi said.
“They enjoyed the discussion and sharing their ideas,” she said. “And they worked together. For example: One person started the eggplant, someone added a bit to it, maybe some highlights, and then a few others argued about the shadowing.”
The project has also educated students about the Foodbank and all the services it provides, as well as the local businesses and people that donate their time there.
For Monte, the collaboration was an eye-opener as to the generosity, creativity, and talent some of the young people in the community.
“I am very impressed by our young adults and the sense that they have of making a difference,” she said. “They just have to have a place to plug in and make that difference.”
Arts Editor Joe Payne wishes he knew how to paint an eggplant. Contact him at jpayne@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Jul 9-16, 2015.
