Art

Amy Mitchoff  

Holy Family staff member since 2016

University of Oregon
The Art Institute of Portland

I graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in Humanities and Art History.  As an undergrad, most of my academic focus was in the classics of Greek and Roman antiquities.  Upon graduation, I moved to Portland, got married, and enrolled at the Art Institute of Portland to pursue my second degree in Interior Design.  While at A.I., I interned with OMSI in the exhibit design department.  With my second degree in hand, I went to work for Green Curve Design Studio and then later Ankrom Moison Associated Architects.  I practiced commercial design for several years before embarking on life’s most exciting adventure...having children and raising a family.  I am thrilled to be a part of the staff at Holy Family and look forward to a year of discovery and creativity. 
 

ABOUT ART
At HFCS we cultivate confidence while engaging the minds and hands of our students through art.  Students are challenged to explore, create and critique visual art through the defining lens of the elements and principals of art and design.  

Art education takes a holistic approach to the education of the whole child as a learner and a future member of society. Not all students learn in the same way.  Through the visual arts, students are able to address and solve problems through the development and cultivation of creative thinking.  

Curriculum lessons are developed using the methods of Discipline Based Art Education, which is defined in terms the four disciplines of art production, art history, art criticism and aesthetics.  In addition to DBAE, lessons are layered with Visual Thinking Strategies.  These strategies stretch the minds and imaginations of students as we dig deeper into critiquing and investigating works of art. 

I want my students to use their art time to grow creatively and freely.  To create and explore with different media.  To make connections with the world by investigating it through the lens of an artist.  Students become self aware, engaged learners through art.  I hope my students leave the classroom inspired.  There is creativity in everyone, and I wish to help my students find it, feed it, and watch it grow through the years.