Montserrat Students Cultivate Community Involvement through Artistic Endeavors
In an exciting collaboration, students from College of the Holy Cross and Rice Square Elementary School have come together to create a series of tape art installations that celebrate Worcester's culturally rich identity.
Led by the Global Montserrat Cluster of Holy Cross students, the TAPEART project began with workshops where the sixth-graders were guided in creating their own designs. TAPEART, a method of creating complex imagery with masking tape, was first introduced by Michael Townsend and Leah Smith.
The Holy Cross students, under the leadership of Chief News Editor Kate Santini '27, and Features Editor Nicole Letendre '23, have been instrumental in planning and executing the project. The showcase will culminate on May 5th with a display of the students' artwork, accompanied by a brunch at Kimball Dining Hall, a tour of the Holy Cross campus, and TAPEART creation underneath the Montserrat students' "Worcester Windows".
The "Worcester Windows", a series of large-scale tape art installations based on Worcester immigration in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, were created by Montserrat students. Caitlin Wiffler '27, a student in the Natural World Cluster at Holy Cross, was among those who participated.
Lizzie Swanson '28, another Montserrat student, found tape art initially challenging but was able to master it with practice and instruction. The sixth-graders, on the other hand, embraced the medium with enthusiasm, each writing personal reflections on what "Global Worcester" means to them. They picked a different cultural object and animal to incorporate into their work.
The TAPEART project is not just about art; it's about fostering creativity, teamwork, and community engagement. It's about bringing together young minds to create something beautiful that reflects the diversity and richness of Worcester.
In addition to the Holy Cross and Rice Square collaboration, the TAPEART showcase will feature an audiovisual display, "Massively Distributed", brought about by Masary Studios, Monserrat's "Natural World" cluster, and Arts Transcending Borders.
This project is a testament to the power of art and collaboration in fostering a sense of community and pride. As the installations go up, Worcester will be adorned with a vibrant tapestry of creativity, reflecting the spirit of the city and its people.
The article was published in "News", "Features", "Eggplant", and on the College of the Holy Cross's official website. For more information about the TAPEART project and its impact on the Worcester community, please refer to local Worcester news sources, Holy Cross campus news, or Rice Square Elementary communications.
- The TAPEART project, led by Holy Cross students under Kate Santini '27 and Nicole Letendre '23, is a collaboration with Rice Square Elementary School that aims to foster creativity, teamwork, and community engagement.
- Organizations such as the Global Montserrat Cluster, Masary Studios, and Arts Transcending Borders are involved in various aspects of the TAPEART project, showcasing the cross-disciplinary nature of the events.
- The project not only focuses on arts but also reflects the education-and-self-development aspect as students from different organizations work together to create something that celebrates Worcester's culturally rich identity.
- The community is encouraged to learn more about the TAPEART project and its impact on Worcester by referring to local news sources, campus news, or Rice Square Elementary communications.
