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Arts & Entertainment

Budding Artists On Display at Medfield's Zullo Gallery

Stop by the Zullo Gallery on Main Street for the 16th annual Student Faculty Art Show. The exhibit runs through May 1.

Picasso, eat your heart out. Rembrandt move over. The next generation of masters is on the rise.

Well, perhaps that’s overstating things a bit, but the one thing that’s not an exaggeration is the fact that the Medfield school system has produced a number of very talented artists.

That fact was on full display at the recent Student/Faculty Art Show, which featured close to 80 original works of art, produced by Medfield students. In addition, each of the nine teachers involved in the program displayed a representative work of their own.

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“We take works of art that talk about our curriculum within each [of Medfield’s] [schools],” esaid artist Nancy Devano, who teaches at both the and . “Here, in the gallery, we show some of the samples of what we’re doing in some of the grades throughout the year.”

The Student/Faculty Art Show, which was originated by retired teacher, Susan Parker and Gallery manager, Bill Pope, is now in its 16th year.

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“They decided it would be a really good thing to set up something of this sort, so they could highlight student work in the public schools,” Devano said.

Though the number of pieces on display is impressive, it is a mere fraction of the excellent work produced by the Medfield school system’s budding artists.

“I had to put a cap of 10 pieces per teacher and a little bit fewer than that for part-time teachers, in order to keep the numbers down below 100,” said Jim Cousins, K-12 Content Specialist for Fine Arts. “Once we hit the 90-100 mark (in previous showings),” he added,” it started to get a bit crowded. This year’s show has a nice movement to it and this facility, the Zullo, is just phenomenal for showing work like this.”

The show encompasses artwork from kindergarten through 12th grade.

“I, myself, have all 4th  and 5th graders and Middle School students at 6th, 7th and 8th grades,” said Nancy Devano.

Some of her students’ works was displayed alongside that of their teacher, who is a practicing artist.

“I’ll be displaying here in July, as part of a little group exhibit,” she said.

Each piece on display was placed in attractive frames, which the gallery re-uses from year to year, in order to keep costs down.

“Of course, the artwork is returned to the students,” Devano said.

Adding to the professional feel of the show is the fact that the Zullo gallery has undergone renovations, providing an attractive setting for this and other art shows and performances held there.

“It was totally restored, a few years ago,” Deveno said. “The ceilings … everything. It’s absolutely fabulous, what they did.”

Jim Cousins said the gallery hopes to be able to install an elevator, for wheelchair access.

“Bill Pope (who runs the gallery) has a lot of plans for once that is installed,” he said.

Fundraising efforts are currently underway to provide funds for that purpose.

The Student/Faculty Art Show is an invitational event, attended by the displaying artists and their families. “We wait until just before the Zullo show to let [the students] know that [their work] is going to be a part of the show,” Cousins said. “Then we send home parent letters, inviting them to the reception.”

For the general public, the artwork will remain on display at the gallery through May 1.

Sophomore, Emmajane Kanter, whose oil pastel was among the works on display, said this is her second showing at the Zullo Gallery.

“It’s [my] first time since sixth grade,” she said. “I’m very excited. I’m honored and flattered that I’m in [the art show]."

Cousins added that “it’s really a special thing for those students, when they know that their work is to be exhibited here, because after 16 years, it’s got a reputation.”

“I’ve [taught art] in many different places,” Deveno said. “This is the only place where you have a gallery where we can exhibit [art student’s] work and that does this on an annual basis.”

“I think it’s great that you get to see all the work that we put into it,” Emmajane Kanter said. “There are so many great art students in Medfield and it’s really cool that we can see all the different levels and see the little kids coming up and all the seniors, who are already here.”

“To have your work at the Zullo,” Cousins said, “ is really huge.”

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