Trine students pay tribute to late artist Pollock

By Lauren Keyser
psychology/communication ’15

Trine students participated in Pollack Week, a celebration of American artist Jackson Pollock who is known for his paintings in the abstract expressionist style, by making Pollock-style paintings and writing haiku poetry in response to the images.

The paintings were created by the art appreciation class taught by Roxanne Kaufman. After studying Pollock and his work in class, the students were able to express their creativity by dripping and pouring paint on to a canvas to create an abstract painting.

Kaufman wanted her students to experience making art in her class, instead of just observing it. “The reason I had students actually create paintings and not just study Pollock’s work was to give them an opportunity to experience their own creative processes, something they may not have experienced since they were in elementary school. … Once they are given the opportunity to be truly creative again, it is truly beautiful. Those moments are why I love teaching art.”

The haiku poems that accompany each painting were created by the creative writing class taught by Amy Nicholls. Her students looked at the paintings and were instructed to create a haiku that explains the painting.

Haiku is a Japanese form of poetry from the 13th century that consists of three-line stanzas broken into lines of 5, 7 and 5 syllables. Haiku is traditionally written in the present tense and focuses on an association between images. The focus is on a brief moment in time; a use of provocative, colorful images; an ability to read in one breath; and a sense of sudden enlightenment and illumination.

The paintings and poems are on display outside of Taylor Hall on the construction site fence. They will be on display until Monday, May 4, weather permitting, and then they will be taken down and returned to the students who created them.

Photo: Trine students in an art appreciation class taught by Roxanne Kaufman expressed their creativity by dripping and pouring paint on to a canvas to create an abstract painting. Students in Amy Nicholls' creative writing class then created haiku to explain each painting. The paintings and haiku are on display until Monday, May 4, weather permitting.