Giving Back With Art

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! At the end of each school year, students in Renee Bailey’s AP Studio Art class do a final art project in celebration of and appreciation for their entire school careers.! This year, based on an idea for the project suggested by Scott Diamond, Broadcast TV/Social Media Coordinator, class members decided to create a three-panel mural backdrop for the high school’s television broadcasting studio.! Bailey also noted the Television Production Program, as it is now called, has advanced art programs throughout the years by showcasing various art projects, providing publicity and even airing segments to demonstrate various art techniques.

This year, Bailey’s students began researching and sketching the mural during the second week of May after talking with Diamond.

“They asked me questions about the Television Broadcasting\Program to help them get an understanding of how they wanted to interpret broadcasting/communication in the 3-piece panel display,” he said. “The three words I used to describe this program were Pride, Legacy and Communication.”

Painting started shortly after meeting with Diamond one final time, taking pictures of equipment in the TV studio and showing him some sketches.  In all, the project took 4 weeks.

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! Bailey said the mural depicts the evolution and importance of the Television Production Program and it’s impact on the school and community. The first article written about the program in the Finger Lakes Times, is incorporated in various shapes and sizes in all three panels. Students used their knowledge of the art movement, Neo Dadaism, for this technique and stenciling.  

“They incorporated information from researching and watching the movie “Pollock” about Jackson Pollock’s use of positive and negative space on a large scale and his famous drip painting technique for the Cell Tower.” she said.! The colors used in the mural are significant with blue symbolizing Legacy; purple, Pride and red and orange, Communication. ! Students who created the mural include: NHS juniors Evie Childs and Juliana Otero and seniors Jovany Jimenez, Grace Blondell, Courtney Caralla and Hannah Triplett.

! Diamond said he is “very blown away” by the mural that will be mounted on the wall of the studio soon. “I knew the students would kind of do their own artistic interpretation, but the mural is pretty much what I hoped for and it encompasses the program,’’ he said.! Bailey and her students dedicated the mural to Diamond’s father, Mike Diamond, who retired in 2015

and Ed Doyle, who retired in 2007. ! They were the founders in 1995 of the Radio and TV Broadcasting program at NHS. Scott Diamond, a 2008 NHS grad who earned a bachelor’s degree in Broadcasting and Mass Communication from SUNY Oswego in 2013, was hired to fill the vacancy created by his Dad’s retirement in 2015. ! Mike Diamond and Doyle attended an informal after school dedication ceremony for the mural June 13th.! “They were very happy to see the broadcasting program still thriving and they enjoyed listening to each student describe their interpretive addition to the panels,” Bailey said.  

In a thank-you e-mail afterward, Doyle wrote: “As always, you look for the best in people and make connections that matter.Your students are lucky to have you as their teacher.  Thanks so much for including the history of the program into the backdrop murals. Scott has a great future ahead of him and Mike and I can enjoy seeing the program grow.

In a text message to Bailey, Mike Diamond wrote: “In the words of Clint Eastwood, Make my day . . . and you and the class did.  Thanks!”

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Thanks to Scott Diamond and Renee Bailey for providing photographs!