Maya Daniels of Los Angeles said she signed up for a 10 a.m. art class on the second Sunday of the program “on a whim.”
Daniels said the class served as a reminder of how calming art can be.
“I was debating whether I wanted to wake up early on a Sunday or not, but I’m so glad I did,” Daniels said. “It was one of the best Sunday morning experiences I’ve had at cherubs so far. I really enjoyed getting to freely express myself through the paint and getting a chance to relax and do an art project early in the morning after a stressful week.”
Daniels was one of 35 cherubs who attended the “Canvas and Cookies” painting class led by artist Marjorie Geraci in Fisk 311.
Geraci gave a two-hour tutorial on how to paint the Weber Arch — sky, path, arch, trees and flowers. Built in 1994, the 24-foot memorial to former university president Arnold Weber serves a key role in March Through The Arch, a university tradition that welcomes incoming freshmen and sends off graduating seniors.
Daniels said she valued the chance to be creative.
“We got to put our own artistic twist into it with all the colors and with the type of trees we were painting and the type of rocks and The Arch,” Daniels said. “It was a really good choice to paint because everyone could put their own spin on it.”
Despite initially hesitating to wake up early, Stella Cardoso of Miami said she enjoyed the class so much she may take up art again.
“I used to do art in freshman year, and then I haven’t picked up a paintbrush since,” Cardoso said.
Geraci brought chocolate chip cookies to fortify her painters.
“Halfway through, most of them weren’t eaten, so Roger Boye came out and grabbed the platter, and I was nearest to the cookies, so he tapped me on the shoulder,” Liam McCall of Reno, Nevada, said. “I looked back, and he was offering and pushing the cookies toward me, and I took a few.”
Due to limited space in his suitcase, McCall decided to mail his painting back home as a gift to his mother.
Still, Sihan Liu of Tibet said the unique format filled both his stomach and mind.
“The sugar definitely helps for your creative painting, and also, I think I had three cookies and Sophia Du had five cookies, and we were basically just eating cookies and talking about life and painting,” Liu said. “I think that’s an ideal way to live.”
Ultimately, Daniels said the addition of her newly painted canvas brightens up her room.
“My roommate actually was there with me, and she took our paintings and put them on the top of our window, and so it’s a great reminder of that memory,” Daniels said. “I’m so glad I went too, because now her painting has a pair, and so, it matches, and it looks really cute and it kind of ties our whole room together.”
