A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

A picture speaks a thousand words

Students at Cold Spring Harbor Jr./Sr. High School are creating a kinder world through art by participating in The Memory Project Nigerian School Collaboration. The Memory Project, a nonprofit organization, strives to connect students with students around the globe by inviting art teachers and their students to create portraits for youth around the world who have faced substantial challenges including abuse, extreme poverty, loss of parents and neglect. The personalized portraits help the children feel valued and important, to know that many people care about their well-being, and to act as meaningful pieces of personal history in their future.

“This was one of the most beautiful projects I have seen this year,” Superintendent of Schools Jill Gierasch said. “Having had experience with this organization in the past, I know full well the impact of this beautiful gift. Thank you to our talented student-artists for making a difference locally and globally. I am in awe.”

Art teacher, Laura Cirino, proposed the idea to her drawing and painting and advanced drawing and painting students as a volunteer opportunity. More than 50 students stepped up to participate in this very special project.  

“I am proud of my students who took great care in creating stunning portraits of 50 Nigerian children with whom they shared their work. The CSH students took great pride in their work as they viewed a video of the Nigerian children and seeing their happy reactions upon receiving artwork from halfway around the world,” Cirino said. 

Students, who worked with a school in Nigeria, were provided with a photo and a plastic sleeve for their finished portraits to be shipped to the recipients. A touching part of the Memory Project was to include a tracing of the artist’s hand on the back of the portrait so the recipient could place his or her hand over it, symbolizing holding hands with a friend across the ocean. The smiles, laughter and tears of joy were shared miles apart, as the students watched the children in Nigeria receive their individual portraits.

“This opportunity was made possible by the CSH Cultural Arts Committee supporting our program,” Art Department Chairperson Christine Oswald said. “This project is an invaluable human experience. The process of making art is so very personal. To share a work, especially a portrait, with another human being says, ‘I value you.’ “

The student-artists now hold these portraits in their own portfolios and the Nigerian children have one-of-a-kind portraits that capture a moment in their lives to treasure forever.

Photo : Cold Spring Harbor Jr./Sr. High School student-artists brought joy to children in Nigeria by participating in the Memory Project Nigerian School Collaboration.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Photos courtesy of the Cold Spring Harbor Central School District