Yesterday marked the end of our 2022 Summer Arts & Smarts activities. As usual, our summer was a vibrant mix of visual art, storytelling, gardening, cooking, and friendship.
Susan Fowler graced us with her energetic presence to tell us stories about friendship, caring for one another, and caring for the Earth. She led us in imaginative drawings of what we see through Patchwork’s big circle window. She showed us how to turn corncobs into 4th of July sparklers. She strung Earth beads, added them to paper peace cranes in a wish for peace on earth, and encouraged us to be Purple People of Possibility for the Planet.
In the garden, the Southwestern Indiana Master Gardeners helped us plant sweet potatoes and zinnias. They led us in a scavenger hunt through the garden to locate snack ingredients to eat. They taught us about honeybees and worms. They helped us mulch our garden, and they celebrated when we picked two big tomatoes from our garden on their last day with us.
Jean Page, Molly Fahrlander, and Jane Vickers all took turns leading art projects. They helped us turn socks into sloths. They showed us how to make ceramic wind chimes for our own gardens. They taught us to make origami butterflies and frogs. They showed us how to turn a tracing of our hands into a watercolor painting of an animal. And they helped us make handprint butterflies on the side of a rain barrel that will be auctioned off to benefit Patchwork at the September Haynie’s Corner Arts District First Friday.
You can see all of these activites and more in this video review of our summer: