Cleveland, Akron & Canton students spend an afternoon in the gallery

WOOSTER, Ohio - As a score of middle and high school students from Cleveland gathered in front of a 1938 oil painting titled "Sharecropper Boy," Kitty McManus Zurko urged them to look closely and tell her what they saw.

"Artists are very intentional about what they put into their art," said Zurko, director of The College of Wooster Art Museum. "As you describe what's in front of you, trust yourself to read what you are seeing, as it takes the form it does for a reason."

The students stared in silence for a moment at Hale A. Woodruff's image of an African American man in a bright yellow hat, clutching what appeared to be the handle of a hoe or shovel. Slowly, hands began to go up.

"He's looking down."

" The colors in his face, the reds, look like anger and pain together."

" He looks like he's making a hard decision."

" It looks like there's a road going up that hill behind him."

With each response, Zurko nodded encouragingly or asked a question to draw out further observations. After a few minutes, the group moved on to another canvas and began again.

The students were part of a larger group of about 125 young people and 25 adults  from Cleveland, Akron, and Canton, who came to the museum Saturday for an afternoon of activities that included gallery talks, a video about the work of artist Romare Bearden, a project in which they were asked to create collages in the style of Bearden, a tour of the Wooster campus, and a presentation from the college’s admissions office.

The exhibit they had come to see, "The Harmon & Harriet Kelley Collection of African American Art: Works on Paper and Selections from the AT&T Art Collection," is one of the largest and most comprehensive traveling exhibitions ever organized featuring works on paper by African American artists from the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. It remains on view at the museum, located in Ebert Art Center, 1220 Beall Avenue, through Oct. 28.

The students' trip was made possible by the AT&T Pioneers program, one of the largest company-sponsored volunteer organizations in the country.  More than 350,000 AT&T employees and retirees nationwide participate in community service activities through the Pioneers program. In Ohio alone, AT&T employees in the program worked more than 102,000 volunteer hours in 2006.

The College of Wooster is an independent liberal arts college, nationally recognized for an innovative curriculum that emphasizes independent learning. Each Wooster senior works one-on-one with a faculty mentor to create an original research project, written work, performance or art exhibit. Founded in 1866, the college enrolls approximately 1,800 students.