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6:30 – 8:30 p.m., Saturday, June 28, Cascadia Art Museum, 190 Sunset Ave., Ste. E., Edmonds
Tanya Sharp of Spark! Creativity began her organization this year with the hope of bringing the arts into the classrooms of Snohomish County. This year, Spark! Creativity introduced pilot programs at Madrona K-8 and Henry M. Jackson High School. Students learned about the transformative worlds of visual arts, ceramics, and creative writing, gaining tools to express themselves, build confidence and explore new possibilities. As Sharp gears up for a fundraising event and celebration of Spark! Creativity’s first year, she sat down to share her experiences and goals for the future.
Tickets to the fundraiser are available for $75 here.
Watch a video about the program created by Duncan Sharp Films and his son Dominic Sharp.
EM: What inspired you to start Spark! Creativity, and how did it come to life?
TS: When I was in my Arts Leadership program at Seattle University in 2019, I had to come up with a project for a community-based art organization. I thought of doing an arts education nonprofit in Snohomish County. I live here and also have two children in the local school system, where I noticed that there was no art education in their classrooms. My background is in fine and performing arts, so I’ve seen that it’s very important. I also work in the arts. I’m a user experience designer and a graphic designer. I believe that having that access and exposure at a very young age provided me the confidence to want to go into the arts. When the arts are integrated early on in education, kids are willing to try new things and not be afraid, and then they can scaffold and learn skill sets over time, feeling like they can be artists.
EM: What’s the story behind the name “Spark! Creativity”?
TS: This is a funny story. I actually liked “Art Sparks,” but after doing some competitive research, I learned that there is another program in Edmonds called “Art Start.” I didn’t want our program to be too similar to theirs, and so I switched it to “Spark! Creativity.” We collaborate with Art Start, which is part of the Graphite Arts Center. Graphite provides art materials for schools, and they train the classroom teachers at their facility. We both have the same goal, which is to make arts education accessible to schools. Spark! Creativity’s mission is to bridge the gap in arts education by making it accessible and engaging for youth, supporting both their personal and professional growth.
EM: Can you share one or two moments from this first year that reminded you why this work is so important?
TS: We had a classroom at Madrona K-8 where a lot of change was happening. Julie Perrine, who has taught in the school system for a long time, agreed to come in and revitalize a ceramics program that had been dormant since before the COVID-19 pandemic. She trained teachers on how to use the kiln and perform glazing, enabling them to make the program more sustainable. The kids from that class worked together on a community art project and created pinch pots. This project was a favorite for many students who had never used clay before. Clay is a very difficult medium to get your hands on because it’s expensive. The school had a brand-new kiln hidden behind a bunch of garbage cans. Everything was already there! A highlight was seeing kids use the clay to work through difficult feelings related to the changes they were experiencing.
We also did a bead project where each student put a positive word on a large, multicolored, donut-sized bead. In the fall, they will stack the beads on rebar and place them directly behind the classroom, allowing students to see them through the windows.
EM: What types of arts programs have you offered so far, and how did students and schools receive them?
TS: We also have another amazing teacher, Mona Fairbanks, who won the poster contest for the Edmonds Arts Festival. She taught most of our Visual Arts classes at Madrona, K-8. Fairbanks brought in photos of birds and fauna for one of our classrooms, and students learned about drawing from nature. We’ve also experimented with mixed media, such as collage. We also did continuous line drawings with mannequins that we brought in. We’ve done watercolor, oil pastels, pen and ink, and learning about lines.
Many of the students we served at Madrona, from fourth to fifth grade, were products of the COVID-19 pandemic, having spent their kindergarten years in front of computers. Teachers noted that many of them were still developing their hand-eye coordination and grip, so we ensured that the arts instruction we provided addressed this need. The work that they had done is amazing! We provided a huge variety, even finger weaving. We created Dr. Seuss-inspired colored pencil art and worked with alcohol ink. They also engaged in collaborative art, which included printmaking and mark-making. Kids in middle school had not been exposed to print-making techniques, so Fairbanks taught an introduction and plans to move up to more advanced printmaking techniques.
EM: What can guests expect at the First Annual Fundraiser on June 28?
TS: They can expect to be excited by the Montlake Terrace High School jazz band. There will be a testimonial from Scarlett Scott, a Spark! Creativity student from Jackson High School, who just took second place in the WE SPEAK Poetry contest at the Edmonds Center for the Arts. Scott will share about the programming and read her winning poem. There will be over 50 silent auction items (many of which are art-oriented) at a huge variety of price points, starting as low as $25, so there’s something for everyone. Several auction items are experiences from Seattle and Edmonds arts organizations, including a few trips: one to Victoria to see Dance Victoria, and a family-friendly three-night stay at Sun River in Oregon. There will also be an experience from Cline Jewelers.
Jeff Boyer from Jeff UNCORKED will provide wine and beer, and we’ll have two specialty Spark! Creativity-branded cocktails. Guests will enjoy heavy hors d’oeuvres from Epulo and have free access to Cascadia Museum. Also, everybody will get a little goodie bag with some fun Spark! Creativity swag.
EM: How does this fundraiser support your goals for the upcoming year?
TS: The fundraiser will support expansion into Title I schools. We have 14 Title I schools in our district. I have distributed flyers to all the principals, and we have a handful that are interested. We will also continue our programming at Madonna K-8, and we’re happy to collaborate with other schools not under Title I. To fund a school for two lessons a month costs at least $3,000. Funding for weekly lessons costs $5,000 for a school, and for a very inclusive program, funding materials and supplies costs closer to $10,000.
EM: How can local individuals or businesses get involved, even if they can’t attend the event?
Businesses can provide sponsorships. I have a sponsorship packet that includes all the information about their impact at various levels.
Individuals can volunteer. I need help with our upcoming fundraiser. We also need volunteers for our art activity booth at the Edmonds Block Party on Aug. 9. Lastly, we have four summer camps coming up in July and August, and it’s always nice to have at least one volunteer to help out, allowing the teacher to focus on teaching.
EM: What are your hopes or goals for Spark! Creativity in the next year? The next five?
TS: I have huge visions, but I’m trying to be more realistic about it. So expansion is number one. In order for me to expand, I need to have stipends for project managers at each of the participating schools. It takes about 20 hours a week to manage a school. We’re reaching out to various university programs where students can get a paid stipend to manage the school and learn art leadership skills, and how to administrate and work with a school.
The other part is that we want to compile a Youth Leadership Board and a mentorship program. We want to better support our youth in arts education.
We’re focusing on visual art and creative writing, but we’d like to eventually integrate dance, music, and performing arts. We’re starting with these two programs, but there’s an opportunity for more by partnering with other organizations in Edmonds or Everett.
EM: If readers take away one thing from this story, what would you want it to be?
TS: Art is life. It sets you up for happiness, healing, conceptual thinking, and confidence. Inserting it into the schools is setting up our next generation to be creative and critical thinkers.
Learn more about how to empower students at the fundraiser on June 28 (tickets here). If you can’t attend but still want to support Spark! Creativity and help the organization expand into other schools, you can also make a donation.
Elizabeth Murray is a freelance writer thankful to call Edmonds home. When she’s not busy wrangling her two kids (and husband), you can find her playing ukulele. She can be reached at elmm22@gmail.com.
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