Children overseas who are either orphaned or neglected may soon have their own portrait in their hands, thanks to some local art students.
The Memory Project is an international organization that provides hand-made portraits to a child overseas that may be disadvantaged in some way. Kara Milianta, an art teacher for the Poland High School, said she was inspired to participate in the Memory Project after reading about it online.
“I felt like we had to do it,” she said.
Milianta said she had been looking for a project for her students to add to their portfolio. The portfolio would be used for consideration for the school’s advanced placement art class.
Students started on their portraits about a week ago. Ten of Milianta’s students are working on one portrait and need to have them completed for mailing by June 1. Since they are going to use it for their portfolio, Milianta said they will take a digital photo of the portrait when it is done.
Milianta said there are three levels to doing the portraits. Her students will be doing the more advanced level, where they are actually making the portraits with either charcoal, colored pencils are acrylic paints. To help guide some of the students with the portrait, they have the photograph divided up into a grid to figure on placement of facial features.
Milianta said it is important to be as realistic as they can since a child tends not to understand the abstract portraits.
The two other ways of doing a portrait would be to do a collage of photos of a child or PhotoShop the picture - such as putting a child’s face with a Superman body.
“I think that it’s so amazing,” said Brienna Bellassai, a junior in the art class. “It’s going to someone who has nothing of their own.”
Bellassai said she knows that sometimes the portraits do not reach the child.
“It’s just a risk you’re willing to take, that you can make an emotional connection with someone overseas,” she said.
The Memory Project was conceived by graduate student Ben Schumaker while volunteering in Guatemala in 2003. He encountered a man who had been orphaned and did not have any personal possessions and suggested he help the kids to find special items to keep.
Schumaker then got the idea for portraits to be done of these children by art students in America, Canada and the United Kingdom. The purpose of the project is “to honor their heritage and identity, and to help them build a positive self-image,” according to its Web site.
For more information on how to participate or donate, go to www.thememoryproject.org.
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Children overseas who are either orphaned or neglected may soon have their own portrait in their hands, thanks to some local art students.
The Memory Project is an international organization that provides hand-made portraits to a child overseas that may be disadvantaged in some way. Kara Milianta, an art teacher for the Poland High School, said she was inspired to participate in the Memory Project after reading about it online.
“I felt like we had to do it,” she said.
Milianta said she had been looking for a project for her students to add to their portfolio. The portfolio would be used for consideration for the school’s advanced placement art class.
Students started on their portraits about a week ago. Ten of Milianta’s students are working on one portrait and need to have them completed for mailing by June 1. Since they are going to use it for their portfolio, Milianta said they will take a digital photo of the portrait when it is done.
Milianta said there are three levels to doing the portraits. Her students will be doing the more advanced level, where they are actually making the portraits with either charcoal, colored pencils are acrylic paints. To help guide some of the students with the portrait, they have the photograph divided up into a grid to figure on placement of facial features.
Milianta said it is important to be as realistic as they can since a child tends not to understand the abstract portraits.
The two other ways of doing a portrait would be to do a collage of photos of a child or PhotoShop the picture - such as putting a child’s face with a Superman body.
“I think that it’s so amazing,” said Brienna Bellassai, a junior in the art class. “It’s going to someone who has nothing of their own.”
Bellassai said she knows that sometimes the portraits do not reach the child.
“It’s just a risk you’re willing to take, that you can make an emotional connection with someone overseas,” she said.
The Memory Project was conceived by graduate student Ben Schumaker while volunteering in Guatemala in 2003. He encountered a man who had been orphaned and did not have any personal possessions and suggested he help the kids to find special items to keep.
Schumaker then got the idea for portraits to be done of these children by art students in America, Canada and the United Kingdom. The purpose of the project is “to honor their heritage and identity, and to help them build a positive self-image,” according to its Web site.
For more information on how to participate or donate, go to www.thememoryproject.org.
