Sarah's Capstone

Capstone is the senior project at ACMA that acts as a culminating event celebrating the student's life, dreams, and lessons learned thus far. It is a year-long effort, includes an art component, and in our house, resulted in blood sweat, tears, and months of frustration. Was it worth it in the end? Absolutely!

One thing that was so hard for Sarah was coming up with a method of presentation. She didn't want to stand and just talk for 50 minutes; that's just not her style or personality. She wanted to do something that would be unique, but that she would be comfortable doing and would get her message across. What message was that? Well, that was another source of frustration. What to do, what to do?

We brainstormed ideas, she'd kind of like one or another, then decide that wasn't what she wanted to go with. We'd brainstorm some more, and go through the whole process again, and again, and again. Repeatedly, she consulted her teacher/sponsor, Mr. Brandau and her mentor, Kim Smith, but still lacked a clear direction. The indecision and frustration was getting to all of us.

One idea that Sarah kept coming back to was the concept of a gallery exhibit of her life. In the end, it was the concept that won out and came to fruition in the form of Capstone. Sarah's premise was that we surround ourselves with objects that are significant to us, and that each of these objects has a story to tell. She decided to gather these objects that held significance to her and curate them into a exhibit that represented her life. Incorporated into this exhibit of objects would be pieces of art work that she'd done. These wouldn't necessarily be her best pieces of art, but those which signified a turning point or an epiphany that impacted her art and her relationship to it.

One thing I realized in the process is that objects of significance vary from the perspective of different people. At one point, Sarah, sensing she needed more objects for display, asked me (her mother, after all!) to walk through the house with her and help find things that she could include. Almost without fail, the things I saw as significant - Science Fair projects, report cards, baby blanket, Halloween costumes I'd made - weren't the things that were meaningful to her. It was an eye-opener to realize that the things that were significant to me in her life weren't necessarily the same things that held significance to her.

In the end, she chose such things as:

• snowglobes from different places she's visited
• stuffed dolls, etc. she'd made
• knitting projects
• Girl Scout scrapbooks (the only photographs she allowed)
• self-portraits she'd done from Kindergarten to the present
• her scoliosis brace
• certain art pieces, including early art and those produced at JumpstART
• art supplies

As part of the process, Sarah researched curation and taught herself what she needed to know to turn these random items into a well-thought-out exhibit. The afternoon before, the whole family showed up to help her get everything displayed. We were her minions and she was the boss, having us clear the space, directing us as to which display tables, pedestals, easels, etc. she needed, where to place each one, what was to be hung at what height, and which tag went with its accompanying object. Every single item on display had a tag backed in black, and random stories about objects were scattered about the display.

Capstone Day! Ready or not, it was here! Her exhibit area was the lobby of the Performing Arts Center at school, and her audience was arriving along with those attending a presentation inside the auditorium. We hadn't anticipated that her exhibit would be viewed not only by her own attendees, but also by those attending Capstone presentations occurring in the PAC all day long. It was pretty cool to listen to comments and see interest on the faces of those unexpected viewers.

Mr. Brandau gave a very nice introduction, describing Sarah's growth as a person and as an artist in her time at ACMA. I had tears in my eyes listening to him talk about my daughter and the capable person she has become - and I couldn't agree more.



Sarah then began her presentation by giving her audience  - students from 6th-12th grade, her friends, teachers, family members, and my good friend, Joan - an overview of her concept of objects and their meaning to us. She then invited us to spend twenty minutes or so viewing her self-guided tour. We were invited to complete an evaluation form she'd designed, then come back together for discussion afterward.

I have to admit, I did a bit of eavesdropping, and really enjoyed hearing the comments and insightful discussion that occurred while people viewed her exhibit. She'd touched a nerve, both among people she knew and those who were there out of obligation. Both groups viewed it differently, yet each got something out of it, and learned a bit about my daughter in the process.

There followed more comments from Sarah, and questions, including a discussion of why certain objects were included. I was so proud of my normally introverted daughter, and impressed with her poised, confident, effective, and self-assured style of presentation. She did a fabulous job! Mr. Brandau apparently agreed, commenting that it was so much more than he's pictured, and definitely an "A" Capstone. Whew!