Through June 22, 2014 // Lela Autio Education Gallery

It is with delight that MAM presents the aesthetic efforts stemming from the creative minds of Sentinel High School's Art program. Sentinel is fortunate to have three very dedicated art teachers: Sally Friou, who oversees the ceramics studio; Robin Gray, who works with her favorite media, jewelry and wirework; and Tim Nielson, who encourages expressionistic drawings and paintings. They teach the foundations of creating a sound piece of art, stressing the fundamentals without losing the spark of teenage creativity.

This exhibition showcases the work of students exploring new media, dipping into different schools of art and expressing their vision. High school art is unique in its manifestation of the rawness
and truthfulness of adolescence in all its angst and glory.

Sentinel High School's long time art teacher, Tim Nielson, does not take his job lightly. He sees freedom of expression in the arts as a critical element in the development of a true democratic nation. He writes this short essay reflecting on the state of art in Sentinel and the rest of the
world:
Missoula's Sentinel High School is full of artists. To enable young people to fulfill their obligations of citizenship is the loftiest goal of public education in a democratic country. To enable young people to enter the workforce in the most efficient manner is the loftiest goal of education in a corporate-managed economy. If we are to work towards the goal of the former rather than the latter, art may
be the most important subject of all, because in a functional democracy everyone--every single person--has to be encouraged to find their voice. At this point in history, visual art is unique in that the movements known collectively as Modern Art, along with the increasing valuation of a wider range of cultural art practices and products, have encouraged us to think that painting and drawing and sculpture and ceramics and printmaking, and all of those arts connected primarily to vision, have a place for the youngest of us to the oldest, the smartest to the dumbest, the most talented to the least. As artists our voices can be used, our First Amendment rights can be exercised, and we don't even have to know what we want to say. Sentinel High School is full of artists. So is your school. So is your family, your state, your nation, your world. You are an artist. March 26, 2014, Tim Nielson, art teacher at Sentinel