Laundry, philanthropy, and experiential learning – in a recent collaboration between the OCDSB and community partners, students combined these elements to create artwork for a great cause.
Over the summer, a group of Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) students completed their Cooperative Education Credit placement with DeSerres art store. Students from the SHSM program at Gloucester High School and the Communication & Design SHSM at Merivale High School created a series of artworks to raise funds for the Community Laundry Cooperative. This organization provides affordable self-service laundry and access to counselling, mentorship, and other resources for newcomers and residents in need.
With support from DeSerres and guidance from a professional artist, the students gained hands-on experience in various artistic techniques, such as screen printing, block printing, cyanotypes, mixed media, and painting. They created art about community and diversity while incorporating a laundry theme – even using a bedsheet as a canvas for one of their designs!
In August, DeSerres and the group of students organized a fundraiser at the St. Laurent Shopping Centre. The event included a printmaking workshop and opportunities to purchase the students’ artwork, including 120 hand-painted sketchbooks, in support of the Co-Op.
Throughout the fall, some of their work was on display at Ottawa’s UniHeART Gallery at Heartwood House. Featuring art by students Azmina, Isabella M., Isabella C., Kayla, Layla, and Robin, the exhibit aimed to “draw the viewer in using shape, colour and humour and perhaps even inspire the next person to use their art to help their own community.”
This initiative is the latest in an ongoing partnership between DeSerres and the District’s Pathways programs. To learn about past initiatives, read our School News stories on student-created art displays and secondary student pathways.
Check out some of the highlights from the fundraiser and exhibit: