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Mar 2010  |  By Mibs  |  Comments (0)

The Cove School Celebrates "The Art of Giving"

On February 20th, The Cove School of Northbrook, which provides individualized education and life strategies for children with learning disabilities, celebrated “The Art of Giving” at its annual benefit.

As usual, the benefit included a silent auction. But what is un-usual is that the auction iincluded four pieces of mosaic art lovingly designed and created by 7th and 8th graders at Cove who have a wide range of learning disabilities. This special project was the inspiration of Chicago artist, Bernadette Elenteny, who is quite familiar with the art of giving herself.

For the last six weeks, Elenteny has graciously given her time and shared her expertise in mosaic art with The Cove School students. She helped them design and decorate four large flowerpots with mosaic tiles – each with a different theme – to donate to The Cove School Benefit silent auction. Elenteny, who attended The Art Institute in Chicago and studied mosaics in Italy, said, “Working in this art form is more physical and hands on, which I thought would appeal to many of the students at Cove. They’ve really enjoyed taking this project from concept to completion.”

Elenteny had a personal interest in giving her time to The Cove School because she has twin nephews with special needs. “Even though I’ve lived and worked in the area, I was not familiar with The Cove School. But when one of the teachers called to see if I’d be interested in working with the kids on an art project, I jumped at the chance. I’ve learned it’s really a special school with wonderful kids.” While juggling her custom invitation business with teaching art classes at the Art Center in Highland Park, Elenteny came to Cove twice a week to work on the mosaic project with students. Her passion and enthusiasm about this art form quickly spread to the kids at Cove.

When asked what he liked most about the project, student Eli Abramowitz proudly replied, “I liked everything about it. I designed the treasure chest on the Aquarium themed pot. It’s fun working with your hands and doing a different kind of art.”

Cove School student Daniel Searle was excited about the idea that someone might actually purchase the flowerpot that he and his classmates worked so diligently to design. “I can’t wait to see people betting their money on our project,” he said, “I hope they pay a lot.”

Although generating excitement about a new art form was one goal of the project, the experience proved to be even more valuable for the students. “This was not just an art project,” said art teacher Heather Waitzman. “The students learned other academic skills like team building and problem solving as they had to figure out how to fit the different mosaic tiles into their design. Overall, Bernadette offered a truly unique experience for our kids.”

Whether their mosaic flowerpots sell for $1 or $1,000 at the annual benefit, The Cove School students will be thrilled with the outcome because, like Elenteny, they have learned the art – and the value – of giving.

Since 1947, The Cove School in Northbrook has become a national leader for kids coping with a wide range of learning disabilities. They’ve created an exceptional environment where children “learn how to learn” and develop the emotional and social skills they need to reach within, achieve above and exceed beyond. For more information, contact Alexandra Argentar at aargentar@coveschool.com or visit The Cove School website at www.coveschool.org.

Support The Cove School by bidding on the St.Patricks Day VIP Parade Package.