RANGELEY — A four-panel art installation at Rangeley Lakes Regional school is a collaborative effort of students, staff and community. The colorful piece was created to be a reflection of the Rangeley region. It also serves as a reminder to consider how plastics and other materials are used on a daily basis.
The mural was created under the direction of visiting artist Kim Bernard. Over the course of a week, Bernard worked with students kindergarten through grade 12 to design and create the artwork using a trio of themes: Rangeley, nature and seasons.
Bernard, of Rockland, is a full-time professional artist with 30 years experience in teaching art. She shows her work nationally and creates installations upcycled out of trash. Currently, her focus is involving students and communities in transforming plastic waste into sculpture. She works with people of all ages through her Trash to Art visiting artist program at schools, colleges and in communities.
The project began even before Bernard arrived at the school on Tuesday, May 27. In an effort to ensure enough plastic would be on hand for Bernard’s visit, school staff asked the community to contribute clean, clear #2 HDPE plastic for the project.
Although school librarian Abigail Thompson was not sure enough of the recycled material had been collected, Bernard was impressed with the outcome. It was the most she could recall a school having available at the onset of a visit, Bernard said.
Throughout the week, students created seasonal scenes using the four cafeteria window screens as canvases.
Each grade contributed to the project based on dexterity and ability, Thompson said. Younger students created grass for the panels, while older students created more intricate pieces such as bicycles and trees.
The first step was to manually cut clean plastic into small pieces, utilizing as much of the bottles as possible. The rings, caps and paper coated pieces are not useable for the project and are recycled, Thompson explained. Using Bernard’s shredder, the plastic pieces were transformed into fine flakes. The flakes were put into the hopper of another machine and pigment was added. The flakes and pigment were heated up and processed through an extruder, resulting in a colorful, malleable material.
The material coming out of the extruder is 400 degrees Fahrenheit and takes about 10 minutes to cool, Bernard said. Wearing gloves, students thoughtfully molded the hot material into their artful pieces.
While they worked, Bernard talked about plastic and the dangers it poses to the environment. The number one ingredient in plastic is petroleum, she told students. She led students through a discussion about how litter takes away from the beauty of nature, and how ingesting a discarded piece of plastic could affect the health of a bird or fish.
Together, students brainstormed ways to recycle, reuse, and reduce the use of plastics. Refusing plastic altogether was also discussed.
“If someone offers you a plastic cup of water, you could refuse it and tell them you use a refillable water container,” Bernard explained.
Once the created pieces were cooled, they were wired to the screens based on the season. Individual and group creations of orange and yellow fall foliage, white snowscapes, blue spring raindrops, and colorful summer flowers were combined to make the collaborative artwork that is now on display in the school cafeteria.
By the end of the week, it was apparent the school’s collection efforts took in more plastic than was needed. In keeping with the lesson she teaches, Bernard takes any remaining plastic from a project with her to use in the next school-based project.
According to Thompson, the funding for Bernard’s visiting artist program was provided by the Janet Waugaman Memorial Fund.
