EDUCATION
Partnership Brings All Third Graders to CMA
Every third grader in Richland School
District 1 came to the Museum this winter
to experience a special program based
on the portraits in Our Time, Our Place:
Photographs of the Black South by Richard
Samuel Roberts. This was made possible
by a partnership between the CMA, the
Richland County Public Library (RCPL)
and the City of Columbia’s Together We
Can Read initiative.
Before their visits, every teacher received
a Teaching Kit that included resources
to bring the people, time period and
geography to life. “The teaching kit was
a good precursor to what was to come.
It was great for the children to see the
photographs before the visit,” said Jim
LeBlanc, third grade teacher at Horrell Hill
Elementary in Hopkins, SC.
The program included a tour of
portraiture, a chance to create collages in
the studio and a reading by author Dinah
Johnson from her book, All Around Town,
which features Roberts’ photographs.
Nearly 2000 students participated in the
program, where they were exposed to
a beloved artist in our collection, highquality literature and a connection with
our city’s rich history. Each student also
received a library card from the RCPL.
“The RCPL wants all the children of
Columbia to have the best books,” said
Leslie Tetreault, children’s room manager at
RCPL. “We are thrilled to be included this
year in this partnership, and look forward
to working together again soon.”
Together We Can Read came to a close on
February 23, when the City of Columbia
presented every third grader with an
autographed copy of All Around Town to
encourage them to continue reading and
learning from the work of Richard Samuel
Roberts.
This initiative was generously supported by
the Smith Family Foundation and the City
of Columbia.
Art Education at CMA
Strengthening our bonds locally while expanding our reach globally
From Behind the Lens showcased the
photographic talents of SC high school
students as they captured images of
the upstate, midlands and low country.
The exhibition was first on view in the
Wachovia Education Gallery in Fall 2009
as a complement to the Ansel Adams:
Masterworks exhibition. It traveled to
Senator Lindsay Graham’s offices in
Washington, DC, in 2010, where it was
enjoyed by over 600 visitors a month.
of Art Museum Directors traveling
exhibitions program. This effort brings
works from American museums to small,
rurual, or dangerous posts abroad that
normally would not have access to art.
From Behind the Lens is currently on view
at the Yemen American Language Institute
in Sana’a, Yemen. Among the places
interested in hosting the exhibition next
are Jakarta, Indonesia; Frankfurt, Germany
and Brunei, Darussalam.
This past summer, the show hit the road
again, this time as part of the Association
Students and teachers participating in
these types of programs at CMA are
able to use this opportunity to discuss
world politics, history and geography, as
well as the importance of art and its role
in the community both nationally and
internationally. How many people can say
their work has been seen internationally?
“All of a sudden, photography became an
art form and a skill in the eyes of these
teenagers. I know that they felt a surge of
pride for not only themselves, but their
school and community, it was something
that they will never forget,” said Nixie
Miller, art teacher at Gilbert High School.
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