The Rego Park Green Alliance (RPGA), a non-profit organization focused on delivering creative technology classes that support community initiatives, is proud to announce that work from several of their students is on display at the Forest Hills Library. The exhibit is artistic and educational, highlighting new advances in 3-D printing that make it possible for kids to design and fabricate (print with recycled plastic) their imaginations.
“We asked students to create a chair and they gave us Emo-Chairs - chairs with emotion,” says Yvonne Shortt, the Executive Director of the Rego Park Green Alliance. “Some chairs the kids designed were happy, some were shy, and some were pouting.” The exhibit offers something for everyone, and new pieces will be added often. Current pieces include artwork designed by a ninth grader at Townsend Harris entitled What Remains. “I wanted to design something based on what was left in NYC after Hurricane Sandy,” said Rebecca, the young artist. Her piece, 3½ by 3½ by 4 inches, shows a couch untouched by Hurricane Sandy but surrounded by buildings and homes with missing roofs and walls. A student designed another piece, a toy throne, so her anime figure could sit in it while she gave orders to her minions. The back of the throne reads “The Queen.” When asked why the chair was called the queen the toy designer answered, “I was going to put the actual name of one anime character on it, but then I decided the throne should be for all my characters, I don’t want anyone to be jealous.”
Find out what's happening in Forest Hillsfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“3-D Design and Printing offers a great way for students to learn about math through an interdisciplinary curriculum,” says Ms. Shortt. Ms. Shortt is an enthusiastic advocate of using math as a way to empower the young artist, toy designer, or architect in the making. The pieces will be on display until the end of December on the second floor of the Forest Hills Queens library.