Each year, the Florence Griswold Museum is home to a standing Wee Faerie Village, and each year a different theme is chosen. For the fall of 2023 display, KO was one of the few organizations selected to participate. The exhibit’s theme this year was an underwater town for underwater faeries to play in. KO students were tasked with creating the Fathom Heights Library: A Sea Faerie Civilization. 

As early as last spring, seventh-grade students in art teacher Katherine Nicholson’s class began work on the house. They collected anything miniature that was both natural and man-made from pine cones, bark, acorns, shells, buttons, to small tiles to build tables, beds, and bookcases. Adorned with thoughtful relics and touches, the whole building came alive with personality and imagination. Nestled under a garden seascape of coral, fish, and sea plants, rows of books were tucked into themed rooms complete with a small sea cafe to enjoy a good kelp tea or a rich chocolate sea-gulp. The library even boasted an old-fashioned diner and ice cream shop. The students completed the project this fall as eighth-grade students.

To culminate the experience, the entire class visited the museum to see their faerie house displayed and explore the over two dozen installments of the wee faerie civilization, which were showcased around the grounds of the museum. From shell-encrusted houses and coffee shops to kelp-covered schools, theaters, and sports arenas, this “underwater” wonderland was truly one for the keen imagination.

The trip was supported by the Goodman Banks Visiting Artist Series. Through the series, students experience the creative process firsthand as they work with visual and performing artists from around the world. Through performances and master classes, artists share their techniques, processes, and creations with Middle and Upper School students who come to know life through the eyes of working artists.

The exhibit runs from September 30 through October 29 and anyone is invited to visit. For more information visit https://florencegriswoldmuseum.org/