The smell of hot glue and the sound of a rain stick wrapped up fourth graders as they walked toward the Atrium Gallery at the Phipps Center for the Arts, cardboard bird in hand.
Local artist Lana Sjoberg collaborated with Willow River Elementary School students and staff to create an immersive gallery exhibit for Migratory Bird Day.
Willow River Elementary and the Phipps
Look closely. You'll be amazed at what you find.
Sometimes birds called for little extra TLC.
Willow River students made their way to the Phipps.
Lana Sjoberg has helped Willow River students create an immersive exhibit featuring works created in the classroom.
Each student took their time to pick the place their bird would sit, fly or climb in the exhibit.
Lana Sjoberg, local artist, has been working with students at Willow and through the Phipps, exploring various art mediums for years.
Sjoberg helped students fix up their birds so they were ready to take to the exhibit.
This year, Sjoberg included a rain stick to mimic the sounds of the forest.
Students watch as their birds go up.
One bird
Each child meticulously picked the perfect spot to place their bird.
From floor to ceiling, one can play “I Spy” with paper plants colored by Kindergarteners, pipe cleaner critters and folded frogs.
Sjoberg started this collaborative art project in 1995 when her son was a student at Willow River.
The legacy continues this year, with a few new additions: a rain stick to add to the ambiance and a billowing waterfall.
The gallery will be open and free at the Phipps Center for the Arts for all to enjoy through date.
Birds for Migratory Bird Day
Willow River fourth graders spend time crafting their birds at school, but they also dedicate time to learning about them. When the classes come to hang their birds up in the gallery with fish line and paper clips, they know where their bird comes from, where in a rainforest it might nest and what other creatures it might steer clear of.
Each step in the creation of the exhibit is intentional, as is the place a student chooses to put their bird.
Tropical Wings, the Phipps and Carpenter Nature Center celebrated Migratory Bird Day with the Atrium Gallery installation, the gallery reception that evening and a Wings of Spring festival on Saturday, May 13.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Thank you for taking part in our commenting section. We want this platform to be a safe and inclusive community where you can freely share ideas and opinions. Comments that are racist, hateful, sexist or attack others won’t be allowed. Just keep it clean. Do these things or you could be banned:
• Don’t name-call and attack other commenters. If you’d be in hot water for saying it in public, then don’t say it here.
• Don’t spam us.
• Don’t attack our journalists.
Let’s make this a platform that is educational, enjoyable and insightful.
Email questions to hcoyle@orourkemediagroup.com.