Visiting Artists Share Their Talents with Our Students

Recently, Philadelphia-based artist Tim McFarlane came to our Lower School to teach as the 2023 Candace Freeman Artist-in-Residence. Along with the students, he created four panels that will hang in the Lower School hallways. Tim’s paintings and collages include vibrant colors, layers, and expressive marks, or “glyphs,” that are representative of a unique visual language that Tim has developed over time. The Visiting Artist Program began over thirty years ago and focuses on bringing professional artists to Westtown’s Lower School who embrace a child-like approach to exploring their own creativity. The opportunity for young artists to work alongside a professional artist to learn about abstract art and explore varied art media is a valuable and an important piece of our arts curriculum. Enjoy the gallery of photos from McFarlane’s visit!

Thanks to the McLear Artist in Residence Fund, Westtown welcomed ceramicist and sculptor Kourtney Stone to Stephanie Wilhelm’s Upper School ceramics classes. Stone worked virtually for a time with Upper School art students teaching how to sculpt eyes and mouths on clay tiles. Then, during her week-long residency on campus, she worked with students on making silicone molds of their tiles and instructed them on pressing and molding techniques to make multiple clay casts. Through this project, students learned about close observation, creativity, and the unique history carried within every person. You can see examples of student work and photos from Stone’s time on campus here. Stone’s work, along with the work students did with her, will be featured in an upcoming show in the gallery.  She will return to campus for the opening reception on April 28, and will once again visit Wilhelm’s classes.