Patches

Artist:   Toll Gate Grammar School - Gillian Beck and Student Artists

Sponsor:   Hopewell Valley Community Bank

Artist's Design Statement

Winning Bid:  $2,100

The design motif for Patches was inspired by the world of a Toll Gator; how they view, interact with, and help shape the community.  The imagery across the ox is rooted in our traditions, celebrations, themes, and the memories created at Toll Gate.  Illustrations of TASK, Pennington Day, Field Day and this year’s theme, which was bucket filling, are just a few of the images our students have incorporated into the project.

Once our staff and students had agreed upon a design, we got to work bringing our vision to life and each grade level had an important role in this special project.  Our first, second, and third grade students created the building blocks of color. The fourth and fifth graders led in the design of the tapestry of images covering Patches.  Our kindergarteners covered the ox with metallic polka dot and heart patterns.  We drew artistic inspiration from the likes of Andy Warhol, Romero Britto and Ted Harrison.  These artists embody the signature pop art style, utilizing bright, flat areas of color and our use of the Acrylic paint medium emulated this.  It was a team effort with our entire student body coming together to visually express the shared experience of seeing the world through the eyes of a Toll Gator. 

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