Artists in Residence Solange Roberdeau and Ido Yoshimoto, who installed a collection of their individual and collaborative works in New House Gallery, also worked with Advanced level Visual Arts students. Students learned from Ido and Solange's practices of finding inspiration in natural materials as well as their deep appreciation of craft.

Ido is inspired by his work as an arborist. He had a rich history growing up among the vibrant wilderness of West Marin and the art residence of JB Blunk, to whom his father was an assistant. Ido just returned from a successful exhibition in Tokyo and is a constant fixture among many Bay Area galleries of art and craft.  

Solange grew up in a similar rural environment further north in Humboldt County.  Her work comes from a drawing and printing-making background influenced by traditional Chinese and Japanese practices. While taking inspiration form the past, her works feel grounded in the present with bold modernist designs employing a rich mix of traditional and digital media--from Sumi ink and building to silkscreen and digital printing.

The two artists also shared their and their artistic processes during a project withwith Advanced level Visual Arts students.

Chinese III, AP, and Intermediate Painting classes made a trip to the studio of international artist and parent Chongbin Zheng. Visual Arts Teacher Eric Oldmixon said, "Our students have been studying the inspiring influences of traditional Chinese painting and Contemporary American abstraction on Chongbin's incredibly rich and successful artist practice. His work serves as a great model for sharing creative and ideas between disciplines.

Mandarin Teacher Shu-Chen Lin arranged Chongbin to come to campus and work with the two classes, as well as with visiting exchange students from Taiwan, on a Chinese painting.

As a culmination to her New House Gallery exhibition, Guest Artist Katie Bertsche discussed her career as a science illustrator with the students of Intermediate Drawing and Painting. Katie shared the process of working with Smithsonian scientists over months to graphically represent a species of duck as well as her current work watercoloring some 130 butterfly species for a tourist brochure in South America.

Artist Lucia Dill visited Branson’s Portfolio Review class on Wednesday to offer feedback as students approach their final projects. Working with Saani Borge '17 (pictured here), she suggested working larger, using materials like lipstick and nail polish in the work itself.