Yakutian children's art coming to USA

An exhibit of artwork by schoolchildren in a remote Siberian village that showcases the impact of climate change on that area will go on display in the Vermont Statehouse cafeteria Friday.

The artwork was given to Max Holmes, an associate scientist with the Massachusetts-based Woods Hole Research Center, as a result of a research and educational collaboration he has developed in Zhigansk, Siberia, a small community along the banks of the Lena River.

The Vermont state curator's office announced the exhibit today. It continues through Jan. 25.

In Zhigansk, students have become key partners in a scientific research initiative exploring the impacts of climate change on the Arctic. Now known as the Student Partners Project, the program was begun in 2002, when a 13-year-old girl named Anya, the daughter of a boat captain, happened to be along for a research expedition along the Lena that included Holmes. Holmes noticed her interest in the scientific sampling work and taught her the basic sampling protocols.

Anya's participation quickly grew to include fellow students and teachers at her school in Zhigansk and in other communities throughout the Arctic.

The exhibit will showcase original paintings done by children in fifth through 10th grade from several villages in the Sakha Republic. The artwork depicts the children's environment and their perceptions of the environmental changes going on around them.

Complementing the student drawings will be photographs of the artists and the Siberian region, maps and native textiles, many of which are intricately beaded and embellished.

Holmes will give a talk on this project at a reception in the Statehouse cafeteria on Jan. 15. The reception, from 3 to 5:30 p.m., will include participants from Siberia via video conferencing.

// Jan. 3, 2008

Resource: timesargus.com