In response to Grace Notes and The Quiet and the Loud the Loreto College Shadow Judges created a playlist of the various musical pieces referred to and played by Grace throughout the novel to listen to while creating their own artwork using acrylic on canvas.
The students were inspired by the way in which art and music were used in both The Quiet and the Loud and Grace Notes not only as a way for characters to express themselves, but more specifically as a means to express and explore their emotions and the things they were going through. They were keen to get hands on exploring their own artistic skills and it was decided that a combined response would work very well for these two texts.
Taking inspiration from George’s art classes, in TQATL, one of the students supplied an optional prompt, while others opted to “paint the unpaintable”. The prompt chosen was “your happy place” inspired by how George feels when she’s on the water or painting and we can see this clearly reflected in a many of the students’ artwork.
The lunchtime art session was so beautiful! With Grace’s music in the background including pieces such as Bach’s Concerto for two violins in D minor, Bittersweet Symphony, excerpts from Fidler on the Roof, and Eva Cassidy’s Autumn Leaves (just to name a few!) the students didn’t hesitate to begin creating their masterpieces. We could have easily kept going all afternoon!
