EUGENE, Mo. - The fourth-grade artists at Cole County R-1 Schools have been recruited to add some color to the produce aisles at Fairway Grocery in Eugene.
In mosaic medium, the children will create images of bananas, carrots, lettuce, onions, strawberries, apples, bell peppers and blueberries.
Two weeks ago, the 45 fourth-graders divided into eight teams, where they chose their color samples and sketched a preliminary composition.
This week, the teams made presentations to volunteer critics to refine their plans.
When they return from Christmas break, the cutting and pasting will begin.
Elementary Art teacher Amanda Davis hopes to have the final mosaics completed by the end of January. Digital images will be converted onto sturdy canvas, suitable for long-term display at the grocery store.
The young artists will take a field trip to the local business in the spring to make their donation official.
"They are so proud of this project," said volunteer critic Pam Lepper. "They've taken it very seriously because they know it's going to be hung in public."
The "bananas team" chose their fruit because they wanted a challenge, said student Jaden Chapman. The team's biggest decision came in voting whether to go with the hanging fruit design or the composition of a bunch on a table.
The team's presentation went smoothly.
Then, Chapman, Cameron Koetting and other classmates enjoyed the opportunity to brainstorm improvements to the other projects.
"We're all friends; it's fun to share ideas," Koetting said.
Sometimes, the helpful suggestions from the group went against core beliefs of the creative team.
A classmate recommended to the "carrot team" that they remove the bowl of ranch dressing beside the bundle of carrots.
"If there's not ranch, it's just not carrots," said fourth-grader Jennifer Lecure.
Davis formed the idea from a group of graphic design professionals teamed up with an after-school program in New York City to create marketing posters for an organic food store.
"I took the idea and fit it to our situation," Davis said.
Last year's third-grade class was exceptionally hardworking and motivated, Davis said. And many of them won art contest awards for the Van Gogh sunflowers mosaic project.
"I knew I could trust them," she said.
So, her next step was to approach Fairway Grocery, which was on board immediately.
"The kids are so excited their work will be permanently up in the grocery store," Davis said.
"The mosaics will be colorful, modern and fun," Davis said. "They'll add something to the white walls."
This project is more than a community outreach, it is helping Davis incorporate several curriculum standards, too.
For example, each student wrote a four-sentence essay about how graphic design relates to this project, she said. And several of the presenters wrote out their speeches in advance.
Davis was able to discuss with them the job description of a graphic designer. Then, Lepper, now an aide at the school, was able to bring her professional graphic designer experience to the presentations and critique.
The mosaic projects require attention to tints and shades as well as composition.
At the fourth-grade level, students' brains are beginning to visualize those things, she said.
"We want to sell the vegetable, the composition should not take away from it," Davis said.