Martin Luther King Jr. Day inspires Long Island students to take part in statewide exhibition
The sixth-graders at two Suffolk County schools had an intriguing assignment: Use small rectangles of paper 2 inches high and 5 inches wide to recreate, using acrylic paint, a small portion of a black-and-white photograph they were given. And Jamie Walsh's students at Dayton Avenue School in Manorville and Eastport Elementary School in Eastport met the challenge.
"I deliberately didn't show them they were making a portrait," said Walsh. "I didn't want them to know the final image. For young artists, they tend to draw from memory what an eye or nose looked like. I wanted them to paint what they were actually seeing."
Eventually, these 219 small paintings done by 195 students in Walsh's classes turned into an iconic image of Dr. the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. — a three-quarter image of his face, his hands clasped toward one side, with eyes focused away from the camera. The students immediately recognized the image, Walsh said, which sparked classroom discussions about King's principles of nonviolence and legacy of peace.
The artwork by Walsh's students is among drawings, paintings, digital creations and essays submitted by more than 2,200 students from 67 public and private schools statewide — including 11 on Long Island — to New York State's 2025 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Fine Arts and Essay Exhibition, state officials said. The exhibition opened Jan. 3 and will remain on view online indefinitely. A selection of the artwork will also be on display at the Empire State Plaza in Albany until Feb. 26.
The work of students from kindergarten to high school is displayed.
Evergreen Charter School, in Hempstead, was singled out by state officials for having the most submissions from a single school — 238 — all from kindergarten and first-grade students, said Ana Castro, district art coordinator for the charter school.
The young students, Castro said, created "doves, a symbol of peace," which they connected to King's "relationship to peace."
Castro said she played for her young students a video of King's 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech — something many teachers said they did — which prompted discussion among the students about why the video was in black and white. This led to discussions about color, Castro said. Many of the students' drawings of doves were placed atop their handprints they had traced on paper and colored various shades of brown. The school has a largely Latino student body.
The first-graders in particular, Castro said, were "open to understanding the differences of skin color ... and understanding [the importance of] choosing love, understanding and kindness."
The exhibition is in recognition of the national observance of King's birthday, which became a federal holiday in 1983, and is observed this year on Monday.
King was born on Jan. 15, 1929. He was assassinated April 4, 1968.
The exhibition "is an opportunity for students across New York State to express how Dr. King's legacy inspires them to pursue a world where everyone's rights are secured and protected," Jeanette Moy, commissioner of the state Office of General Services, said in a joint statement with officials from the state Education Department. Both departments worked in tandem to present the exhibit, officials said.
Milan Wright, of Elmont, a 14-year-old ninth-grader at Sewanhaka High School in Floral Park, said her watercolor and acrylic painting setting the words "I Have a Dream" against puffy white clouds and a backdrop of colors — lavender, blue, red, orange, green — a reflection of a rainbow, was her way of trying to "convey hope and his dream of having equality for everyone."
A classmate, Summer Sanders, also 14 and from Elmont, used colored pencils to draw tulips and lavender flowers, where the petals held the words "I Have a Dream," under a warm yellow sun. "I was drawing a dream you keep chasing after, and keep growing," Sanders said in an interview during a free period at school. "I have the sun shining down and it keeps growing." There is a peace sign in the middle of it all.
Sanders and Wright were among 33 students at the school whose work was submitted to the exhibition by art teacher John Hendrick.
"Before we started this whole endeavor, we looked at Martin Luther King's teachings," Hendrick said. He also played a video of King's "I Have a Dream" speech at the March on Washington. "I had the kids look at various examples of Martin Luther King from photographs of other students' artwork to kind of show them how they could use imagery, colors, symbols, typography to create posters that showcase his life, his work, his teachings, his thoughts on nonviolent protest and all the good he did," Hendrick said.
Walsh explained how her sixth-graders created the 4-by-8-foot mural of King.
"The original photograph was enlarged and cut into about 220 smaller rectangles," Walsh said. Each of the sixth-graders recreated what they saw on the piece of the rectangle they received. Some might have finished more than one."
Walsh said each rectangle the student got had a number on the back of it that corresponded to where it would fit into the finished mural. Walsh assembled the small rectangles, revealing for her students that they had painted a portrait of King last November.
After the portrait reveal, Walsh said she engaged the students in discussions centered on King's philosophy of nonviolence.
Walsh said of the exhibit, "I think it's a great way to just bring a little more familiarity, and a reminder of Dr. King's principles of peace, and to get the kids talking about it again and sharing their perspective."
Veronica Sylvia, a librarian and RISE (Recognizing Individual Student Excellence) teacher at Lee Avenue Elementary School in Hicksville, submitted the work of 32 fifth-graders that included several essays about King's legacy as well as artwork, mostly drawings of King.
Sylvia said students who participated in the King art and essay exhibition began their work last November, since the submission deadline was in December. "It's not normally the time you're thinking about Martin Luther King." But, she said, "the whole point was we should be thinking about him all year long, not only in January."
The sixth-graders at two Suffolk County schools had an intriguing assignment: Use small rectangles of paper 2 inches high and 5 inches wide to recreate, using acrylic paint, a small portion of a black-and-white photograph they were given. And Jamie Walsh's students at Dayton Avenue School in Manorville and Eastport Elementary School in Eastport met the challenge.
"I deliberately didn't show them they were making a portrait," said Walsh. "I didn't want them to know the final image. For young artists, they tend to draw from memory what an eye or nose looked like. I wanted them to paint what they were actually seeing."
Eventually, these 219 small paintings done by 195 students in Walsh's classes turned into an iconic image of Dr. the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. — a three-quarter image of his face, his hands clasped toward one side, with eyes focused away from the camera. The students immediately recognized the image, Walsh said, which sparked classroom discussions about King's principles of nonviolence and legacy of peace.
The artwork by Walsh's students is among drawings, paintings, digital creations and essays submitted by more than 2,200 students from 67 public and private schools statewide — including 11 on Long Island — to New York State's 2025 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Fine Arts and Essay Exhibition, state officials said. The exhibition opened Jan. 3 and will remain on view online indefinitely. A selection of the artwork will also be on display at the Empire State Plaza in Albany until Feb. 26.
WHAT NEWSDAY FOUND
- The 2025 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Fine Arts and Essay Exhibition received submissions from 2,208 students from 67 public and private schools across the state, including 11 schools on Long Island.
- Evergreen Charter School in Hempstead had the most submissions from a single school — 238, state officials said.
- Sixth grade students at Dayton Avenue School in Manorville and Eastport Elementary School in Eastport, created a 4-by-8-foot mural of King by painting portions of a photograph of King.
The work of students from kindergarten to high school is displayed.
Evergreen Charter School, in Hempstead, was singled out by state officials for having the most submissions from a single school — 238 — all from kindergarten and first-grade students, said Ana Castro, district art coordinator for the charter school.
The young students, Castro said, created "doves, a symbol of peace," which they connected to King's "relationship to peace."
Castro said she played for her young students a video of King's 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech — something many teachers said they did — which prompted discussion among the students about why the video was in black and white. This led to discussions about color, Castro said. Many of the students' drawings of doves were placed atop their handprints they had traced on paper and colored various shades of brown. The school has a largely Latino student body.
The first-graders in particular, Castro said, were "open to understanding the differences of skin color ... and understanding [the importance of] choosing love, understanding and kindness."
The exhibition is in recognition of the national observance of King's birthday, which became a federal holiday in 1983, and is observed this year on Monday.
King was born on Jan. 15, 1929. He was assassinated April 4, 1968.
The exhibition "is an opportunity for students across New York State to express how Dr. King's legacy inspires them to pursue a world where everyone's rights are secured and protected," Jeanette Moy, commissioner of the state Office of General Services, said in a joint statement with officials from the state Education Department. Both departments worked in tandem to present the exhibit, officials said.
Milan Wright, of Elmont, a 14-year-old ninth-grader at Sewanhaka High School in Floral Park, said her watercolor and acrylic painting setting the words "I Have a Dream" against puffy white clouds and a backdrop of colors — lavender, blue, red, orange, green — a reflection of a rainbow, was her way of trying to "convey hope and his dream of having equality for everyone."
A classmate, Summer Sanders, also 14 and from Elmont, used colored pencils to draw tulips and lavender flowers, where the petals held the words "I Have a Dream," under a warm yellow sun. "I was drawing a dream you keep chasing after, and keep growing," Sanders said in an interview during a free period at school. "I have the sun shining down and it keeps growing." There is a peace sign in the middle of it all.
Sanders and Wright were among 33 students at the school whose work was submitted to the exhibition by art teacher John Hendrick.
"Before we started this whole endeavor, we looked at Martin Luther King's teachings," Hendrick said. He also played a video of King's "I Have a Dream" speech at the March on Washington. "I had the kids look at various examples of Martin Luther King from photographs of other students' artwork to kind of show them how they could use imagery, colors, symbols, typography to create posters that showcase his life, his work, his teachings, his thoughts on nonviolent protest and all the good he did," Hendrick said.
Walsh explained how her sixth-graders created the 4-by-8-foot mural of King.
"The original photograph was enlarged and cut into about 220 smaller rectangles," Walsh said. Each of the sixth-graders recreated what they saw on the piece of the rectangle they received. Some might have finished more than one."
Walsh said each rectangle the student got had a number on the back of it that corresponded to where it would fit into the finished mural. Walsh assembled the small rectangles, revealing for her students that they had painted a portrait of King last November.
After the portrait reveal, Walsh said she engaged the students in discussions centered on King's philosophy of nonviolence.
Walsh said of the exhibit, "I think it's a great way to just bring a little more familiarity, and a reminder of Dr. King's principles of peace, and to get the kids talking about it again and sharing their perspective."
Veronica Sylvia, a librarian and RISE (Recognizing Individual Student Excellence) teacher at Lee Avenue Elementary School in Hicksville, submitted the work of 32 fifth-graders that included several essays about King's legacy as well as artwork, mostly drawings of King.
Sylvia said students who participated in the King art and essay exhibition began their work last November, since the submission deadline was in December. "It's not normally the time you're thinking about Martin Luther King." But, she said, "the whole point was we should be thinking about him all year long, not only in January."
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