Gibraltar High-Schoolers Get Creative
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Local artists teach teens during Exposure to Creativity program
Each year, Gibraltar High School students have a day to set aside their textbooks in exchange for brushes, cameras and tools. The Exposure to Creativity (ETC) initiative, started in 2007, encourages students to explore their artistic potential through workshops.
Students in Deanna Clayton’s studio work on glass bowls. Submitted. 
A student learns blacksmithing at The Clearing Folk School with the help of instructor James Viste. Submitted.
Led by the high school and Friends of Gibraltar (FOG), in collaboration with The Francis Hardy Center for the Arts (The Hardy Gallery), this year’s ETC was held on March 12. Local artists, including Kelly Bresnahan, Deanna Clayton, Ryan Dayton, Teresa Lind, Terry Murphy, Jeremy Popelka, Suzanne Rose, Stephanie Trenchard, Joslyn Villalpando and James Viste, shared their expertise with students throughout the day. Students participated in nine workshops that covered a wide array of artistic disciplines like photography, blacksmithing, glassblowing and woodturning. More than skill-building exercises, these workshops aim to cultivate a deeper appreciation for the arts and their role within the community.
Instructors Jeremy Popelka and Chelsea Littman work with a student at Popelka Trenchard Gallery and Glass Studio. Submitted. 
Students show off the embroidery projects they made with the help of Joslyn Villalpando from Woodwalk Gallery. Submitted.
The program is funded by the Wisconsin Arts Board, the National Endowment for the Arts and private donations. The Hardy Gallery also collaborates with other local non-profit arts organizations like The Clearing Folk School and Björklunden, which both held workshops.
This year’s program accommodated 100 students across various grade levels at Gibraltar High School. As the ETC program recovers from the pandemic, organizers hope to bring it and its subsequent mentorship program back to full capacity.
