CONVERSATION PIECES Pleasanton: A Public Art Youth Banner Project
Environmental Banner The Environmental Banner was a collaborative effort of over 50 young artists from all over the Tri-Valley. With the help of the East Bay Regional Park District staff an extensive list of local plants and wildlife was gathered, and the young artists painted accurate and detailed images of each plant and animal on the banner as a guide for identifying native flora and fauna. In addition, the banner is a celebration of local natural environments and an inspiration for creating sustainable and drought-tolerant native gardens at home. The East Bay Regional Park District staff who assisted with this banner were LARPD Rangers Christine Cardosi and Eric Whiteside.
“Estrella del Pueblo” Mariachi Banner The students of the Pleasanton Unified School District Mariachi Music Program collaborated to create the “Estrella del Pueblo” Mariachi Banner. Around 40 to 50 elementary, middle and high school students enthusiastically signed up to do this project as an enrichment activity during their weekly Mariachi instructionalactivities which are held at Hearst Elementary School for the whole of the Pleasanton Unified School District. Each student painted a section of the banner in colorful abstract patterns of their own choice. Once the sections were completed, the banner was then designed to depict Mariachi musical instruments and a Mariachi dancer.The banner is a celebration of both the PUSD Mariachi Program and the art of Mariachi in general. The PUSD staff who helped with this project were Viviana Suarez-Curoso and Jamie Mather.
Hart Middle School Wellness Banner In the Spring on 2022 the Pleasanton Arts Council sponsored a Wellness Event organized by Grace Mundaden as part of her Girl Scout Gold Award requirements. This banner is the artistic expression of the students participating in the Wellness Event – all the 6th Graders at Hart Middle School in 2022. The Wellness Banner depicts images that represent pillars of wellness around a central circular design of colored squares. The Hart 6th Grade students each painted squares in a color and design of their own choice. The student-painted circular design implies a sense of community collaboration while conserving individuality and freedom of expression.
“A Space of My Own” Mental Health Banner A banner on the theme of Mental Health, based on the Virginia Woolf essay “A Room of One's Own. In the essay, Woolf writes about the importance of having a safe, creatively-nurturing, and private space in which to write in order to find and develop one's authentic voice through creative exploration. The young artists who painted this banner are students from Village High School. Each of the students drew and painted a virtual room of their own in which they freely explored imagery and styles that gave them joy. Significant aspects of this activity were play, spontaneity, finding possibilities in each mark the students made, uncritical problem-solving, and working collaboratively as a community. The staff at Village High School who helped with this project were Jamie Mather, Heather Pereira, and Joseph Viviani.
Land Acknowledgment Banner The 5th Graders of Alisal Elementary School created this banner as an activity following a talk by Jan Coleman-Knight of the Pleasanton Cultural Arts Council, on the Ohlone Native Americans who lived on the land that is now Pleasanton. Images of animals, objects, colors and designs discussed in the talk were painted on the banner by the students. The central image is of the Pleasanton landscape, specifically Pleasanton Ridge. The Alisal Elementary staff member who helped with this project was Vice-Principal Julie Berglin.
