School Field Trips, Fall 2017

Kentler's fall exhibition, Travelers and Strangers, tells the true-life stories of different people who travel for different reasons. The artist, Lucile Bertrand, juxtaposes fun and treacherous journeys taken by migrant workers, tourists, refugees and passers-by to show how circumstances of travel affect our experience of the landscape. 

This month, we invited four classrooms from BNS to visit our space and see the exhibition up close. We knew that students would enjoy learning about the travelers' stories and sharing their own experiences of visiting relatives, exploring new places, moving houses, or going on wayward vacations. They closely examined the narratives, asked questions, shared what they noticed, and participated in a drawing activity.

Students were asked to map out two trips of their own -- one easy and one hard -- that mirror Lucile's drawings. Stories ranged from the everyday (witnessing a crime while walking through Brooklyn, getting lost on a long car ride) to the fantastical (traveling up a mountain on the back of a unicorn, or vacationing on a hot-air balloon). Each drawing had a starting and ending point, a method of transportation, and captions explaining what and who the person saw along the way.

On October 12, Teaching Artist Ruth Wetzel led the class and devised a new activity: students created low-relief travel maps using aluminum foil inspired by Lucile's Travel Blanket pieces. We were so glad to have Ruth back in our midst and her unique take on the lesson was a treat for the students!

We're thrilled to continue serving our Brooklyn New School population and hope to offer more field trips in the Spring. Stay tuned for more updates as our fall season picks up speed!