Dance Mural by Guest Artist and Hand Students

Hand has a vast variety of art displayed throughout the halls from murals to painted ceiling tiles. The dance department worked with a local muralist, Maria De Felice, to design and paint a mural on the wall outside the dance classroom. The design combines dance with elements representative of Hand such as the hornet and blue and gold colors as well as elements that represent the state of South Carolina such as the State House, jasmine, and the palmetto and crescent moon. Every student in dance was able to help paint the mural and be a part of the process.  

Connection to Philosophical Framework:

Our school inspires creativity by providing meaningful opportunities for students to collaborate with professional artists and express their ideas through the arts. This year, students worked alongside a guest artist to design and create an in-school mural celebrating the art of dance. Through brainstorming, sketching, and hands-on painting, students explored how movement, culture, and artistic expression can be represented visually. The mural reflects students’ creativity, diverse perspectives, and collective vision while creating a vibrant and lasting piece of public art for our school community. By engaging in the creative process from concept to completion, students developed artistic skills, confidence, and a deeper appreciation for the arts as a powerful form of communication and storytelling.

Standard(s) Addressed:

• Dance Anchor Standard 7: I can relate dance to other arts disciplines, content areas, and careers.  
• Visual Art Anchor Standard 5: I can interpret and evaluate the meaning of an artwork. 
• Visual Art Anchor Standard 7: I can relate visual arts ideas to other arts disciplines, content areas, and careers. 

Both dance and visual art have a standard dedicated to relating to other art disciplines. The dance students were able to connect their dancing to visual art. They were also able to evaluate the design of the mural to understand its meaning.

Connection to Arts Strategic Plan:

 Goal 1, Objective 2

• Increase the number of teaching artists and clinicians utilized in the visual and performing arts classes.

By bringing in a muralist to work with the dance students, we were able to give students an opportunity to explore a different art form while connecting it to their own art form.