Gallery • 6 Photos

Sunbursts, snowflakes, spiderwebs and spirals. 

These are the few among many designs students created as students opened up their tie-dye masterpieces made from the Shibori Indigo dyeing technique at Art Week. 

In addition to the tie-dye workshop, which was held from May 28 to May 30, students were able to take part in a fun-filled week from May 28 to June 5, that included activities and events such as the steamroller workshop, film festival, clay olympics and different galleries of artwork that students have created in their classes. 

Ms. Diamond, who teaches Honors Photography and Honors Digital Imaging, is part of a team of art and film teachers who helped organize art week for the second year in a row.

“Art week is a week-long celebration of the arts, and it showcases what we have been doing in our classes all year,” Diamond said. “It’s a fun way for a student to show off what they’re doing, and each day we feature different things.”

The unique indigo dyeing workshop, run by Ms. Simanis, who is an art and textile teacher at Lane, is one of the many workshops that students were able to take part in at Art Week.

Simanis used one of the earliest forms of dyeing found in Japan, called Shibori. 

The process includes typical tie-dye techniques, but after soaking and removing the fabric from the dye, students were able to watch their items turn from green to blue as the dye was exposed to oxygen, a transformation that is exciting to witness, according to Ms. Simanis.  

“I really like that transformation process, and I think for me that’s really exciting to see the students’ reactions,” Simanis said. “If you dip something in blue and it comes out blue, there’s no real big surprise to it, but the idea that it’s a very traditional Japanese technique that has been developed through centuries and centuries of tradition, and to kind of bring that tradition to Lane Tech, is super cool.”

Students not only participated in workshops and activities but were also able to enjoy the art galleries and the film festival, where they could admire the work of art students have been working to achieve all year long.

Art Week can be a thrilling time for art students, who feel a sense of ownership and accomplishment to have their work on display, Diamond said.

“It’s so fun and it’s exciting, and it’s fun to see students take ownership [of their artwork] – there’s a whole different energy,” Diamond said. 

Olimpia Kukula, Div. 956, is an art student who is accustomed to the feeling of finally seeing her artwork come to life, and knows the amount of energy that art students put into their work. 

Art classes at Lane have allowed Kukula to fulfill many accomplishments, including her recent portfolio for her AP Photography class, which will be displayed at the AP presentations in the art gallery on May 28. 

According to Kukula, it is important to come experience Art Week in order to witness the hard work of art students have put into their artwork.

“I think it’s important for a lot of Lane kids to come [to Art Week] and see it because I think a lot of people don’t really realize how amazing our art classes can be,” Kukula said. “They can be like ‘oh wow this is such a cool project, I would want to do something like that’, and then they can end up taking an art class here.”

Art students should be encouraged to show off their work, Kukula said.

“We don’t have to hide our accomplishments, like if you’re proud of something and want to share it then you should put it out there and whoever will be drawn to it will be drawn to it, and maybe you’ll inspire someone else,” Kukula said.