Summer Art Camp is a two week program that kids from Monson and surrounding towns look forward to each year where they get to explore the arts and make new friends. Camp was a great success this year, put on by the Monson Parks and Recreation Department and the Monson Arts Council, taking place at Quarry Hill Community school from July 11-22, 2022. Children in grades 2-8 gathered from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for art making, swimming in the pool and a field trip each week. In week 1 there were 13 campers and in week 2 there were 21 campers.
Director Andrea Newland teamed up with teachers Faith Ward, Hannah Zaits, Titus Neijens and teen councilors Ani and Madi Mason to teach campers a variety of art making techniques. Projects included papier mache sculpture, plaster sculpture, crystal wands, book making, printmaking, photography, poetry, sewing, felting, tie dying of camp t-shirts, salt dough sculpture, bead art, fire art, watercolor and painting on canvas.
In week 1 they took a field trip to the Norcross Wildlife Sanctuary in Wales where they made plaster casts of a bobcat footprint, took a hike, saw deer and wildlife. In week 2 they took a field trip to Silver Bell Farm in Monson where they took a tractor ride, went fishing, fed the goats and practiced their play. It sure was hot out but the kids made the most of it!
In week 2 the kids put on a retelling of Hansel and Gretel with direction from Faith Ward with an audience of parents, siblings and grandparents. They expertly delivered their lines and designed costumes, sets and props. Hansel and Gretel were joined by the Three Bears, birds, Little Red Riding Hood and the giant from Jack and the Beanstalk to help them find their way home.
Another facet of camp is Young at Art which is an art enrichment program especially designed for young children ages 5-7 with a different theme of art-making each day from 9-11 a.m. taught by Hannah Zaits. Twelve boys and girls enjoyed drawing, painting, sculpting with clay, making dinosaur eggs and creating a group undersea mural.
Thank you to Monson Savings Bank for their generous contribution to help pay for field trips and supplies. Thank you to Chart PAC, an art supply company in Leeds, for their generous donation of 45 backpacks filled with watercolors, acrylic paints, pads, brushes, and drawing supplies.
The Monson Arts Council is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization whose mission is “To discover, promote and sustain an appreciation of and an involvement in art and culture in Monson.” It is run by a volunteer Board of Directors who serve three year terms, and who each year elect a slate of officers for the coming year.
Monson Arts Council
PO Box 306
Monson, MA 01057
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Congratulations on a successful Summer Art Camp!