October 4, 2010
By Jason Misner
COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER, HDSB STAFF
A local artist has brought the outdoors indoors at Kilbride Public School to help the school celebrate its milestone 50th anniversary.
The school, with the help of a committee, commissioned local artist and former university teacher Tom Sachade to create a mural that would both inspire the students and staff at Kilbride and commemorate the 50-year history of the north Burlington school. The goal was to add the art to the library, to help spruce up the space and to be placed in a location where everyone could see it.
Sachade had an idea. He grabbed his digital camera and set out exploring the iconic images he thought best represented the Kilbride community. He enthusiastically snapped a total of 100 pictures last fall. Sachade settled on pictures of a circa-1850 chapel, Mount Nemo and the Bruce Trail, which happens to run through the school property.
Inspired, and in less than two weeks, he replicated the best photographs onto three five-foot-by-eight-foot canvasses using durable acrylic paint. They have been glued to one wall – which has been painted a forest green colour, providing a matting-like finish to the paintings – and can be removed.
“That sort of covered the whole scope of Kilbride and the surrounding area,” the 47 year old says in explaining why he chose the pictures. “There are aspects of each one I like.”
Kilbride will be holding a 2 p.m. recognition ceremony on Saturday, October 16, where the mural can be seen. There will be a message from the Board’s new Director of Education David Euale, a performance by the school’s Intermediate choir, a slide show and the opening of a time capsule from 1985.
Sachade has spoke to the students, explaining the meaning of the pictures and the process of creating the art.
“Almost every student was familiar with these images, which confirmed the fact that I had captured the essence of what they were looking for,” Sachade says, complimenting the work of the committee. “It was a lot of fun.”
Sachade’s paintings have certainly made an impression on the students.
Grade 4 student Joel loves the paintings, especially the colours.
“They look like places I’ve seen before,” he says. “It’s really cool how he used the colours.”
Kilbride Principal Margaret Nimigan says the paintings represent the unique community that is Kilbride.
“I think Kilbride is a unique school and is a unique community and the thing people love about their community is the history. I think (the paintings) really capture the uniqueness.”
She said students really identify with the “inspirational” paintings.
“They really evoked connections to the community. I look at (them) everyday.”
Nimigan adds the school plans to use more of the empty wall space in the library to exhibit student art pieces throughout the school year.
Kilbride Public School opened in 1960 as a replacement for the original schoolhouse. The first students of Kilbride went to a one-room schoolhouse, built in 1873, that sits directly beside Kilbride PS. The first staff included a principal's assistant, a music supervisor and a nurse.
For more information abouit the 50th anniversary celebrations, call the school at 905-335-6394.