Lucia Bocchino Fund Donates Art Books To Newark Public Schools

Lucia Bocchino for Promising Young Artists
January 15, 2020
NJPAC, Newark,New Jersey
CHILDREN’S EDUCATIONAL ART BOOKS DONATED BY LUCIA BOCCHINO FUND TO NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOL ART TEACHERS

On January 15, 2020, the Lucia Bocchino Fund for Promising Young Artists presented 65 educational, art-centric children books to the Visual Art Teachers ofthe Newark Public Schools at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) auditorium.

Members from the Lucia Bocchino Fund, NJ Transit, and the Newark Public School System’s Director of Visual &Performing Arts, Margaret El, gathered with over 150 teachers for the presentation. Artist Serena Bocchino, writer and illustrator of What Am I? The Story of an Abstract Painting, donated these books through the Lucia Bocchino Fund as a community outreach as part of her Public Art Installation that was recently exhibited at Newark Penn Station. A component of the installation featured page by page displays of the children’s book, depicting the creation of an abstract painting. The temporary public art installation, at Newark Penn Station, included 27 illustrations from the book, enlarged to 3 x 5 feet installed from October 2019 to January 2020.

The teachers were thrilled to receive the books that contain teaching lessons for the children and positive messages about inclusion, creativity, and friendship.

Alex Bocchino and Serena Bocchino, Board members, for the Lucia Bocchino Fund for Promising Young Artists were in attendance. Christine Blanco, from NJ Transit, and the initiator of the TRANSITIONALarts project spoke to the teachers about her vision to enhance transit stations with public art Installations across New Jersey. NJ Transit and New Jersey State Council for the Arts chose Ms. Bocchino as the inaugural artist for Newark Penn Station’s Public Art Installation, which included 27 illustrations from one of her art books for children (What Am I? The Story of an Abstract Painting) and three other large public art installations based on her paintings.

ABOUT THE LUCIA BOCCHINO FUND:

The Lucia Bocchino Fund for Promising Young Artists has been established in memory of Lucia Bocchino, Artist, Mother, and Wife. The Fund exists to encourage artists in the young stages of their lives in the area of the arts. Lucia was an encourager and a teacher. She was able to see the beauty in all things and all people. Lucia Bocchino always saw the promise in her own six children and all children she came to meet.

To honor Lucia, our hopes are to instill a passion and desire in young artists who show promise in their chosen field of the arts. We hope to encourage those young artists in their artistic endeavors and to make a difference in their lives.

The annual young artists exhibition and event takes place at the Somerset Hills YMCA each Spring.

Please contact the YMCA or Lucia Bocchino Fund in February to be part of the art exhibition.

To find out more about the Fund, please visit: www.luciabocchinofund.org