Two Jersey City Artists Launch Summer Program for High Schoolers
By Jon Whiten • Mar 11th, 2010 • Category: Arts, Blog
This summer on the Downtown campus of St. Peter’s Prep, 15 local high school students will take part in the first-ever Metro Arts Summer Institute. The intensive two-week program will be taught by Jersey City artists (and Prep art faculty) Megan Klim and Nyugen Smith, and it’s modeled on the state Governor’s School for the Arts, where Klim taught for several years. The successful arts program became a victim of state budget cutting, and hasn’t been in operation since the summer of 2008.
“It always was a positive and rewarding experience to see these young artists blossom under this kind of atmosphere,” Klim says. “So Nyugen and I decided to create a similar, yet unique, creative program that would address the skill building aspects, give the opportunity to develop a portfolio and introduce the aspects of being a professional, working artist.”
By its very nature, the five-day-a-week, six-hour-a-day program aims to give young artists the time to focus on their art, as opposed to a regular high school art class, which competes for time and attention with other academics and activities. Klim says the program is also unique in that it will combine technical art instruction with professional development for a holistic experience.
“As far as I know, there is no program in the immediate area that addresses art making as well as how to exhibit and begin your journey as a working professional,” she says. “I know I could have used that when I was starting out.”
As working, professional artists, Klim says her and Smith are well-suited to lead such a program.
“We think sharing our experiences as professionals will make this program different rather than just offering how to paint, draw or sculpt something,” she says.
Tuition for the program is $500, which will cover all the program costs. If the first year goes well, Klim and Smith will consider expanding the program, and also begin looking for donors, sponsors and other funders. If the program takes off, they also hope to begin offering scholarships.
“We believe that the program will also be an exciting opportunity for young artists to meet other like-minded individuals from other cities,” Klim says. “This would give them the chance to learn from and inspire each other, while building a creative network that will hopefully last for years to come.”
The program is open to high school students in Hudson, Essex and Bergen Counties, and applications are due by May 15. More information and application details can be found on the institute’s website.
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Jon Whiten is the founding editor of the Jersey City Independent; he now works for a public-policy nonprofit in Trenton.
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