St. Michael's Showing Fakes and Forgeries, Including One From a Portsmouth Artist

Fifth-graders at St. Michael’s Country Day School will have their copycat skills on display in the annual Fakes and Forgeries exhibit that will begin Monday morning, April 11, in the school’s Rose Canepari Library.

This is the thirteenth year the Fakes have gone on display. In the school’s list of class projects and school events, it is a St. Michael’s favorite. Each student selects an artist to study and, in turn, selects a painting to copy. For fifth-grade teachers Claire Stieff, and Sarah Szabo it is a way for students to hone their research skills, show off their results, and get in touch with their inner Picasso.

Over the course of three mornings, students from other grades visit, wander the gallery, and put on their critic’s hats. The fifth-graders discuss their artists, and ultimately everyone picks a favorite. The works are open for viewing through Wednesday, April 13, when the contents of the Fakes and Forgeries ballot box will be tallied up and the three top vote-getters announced.

This year sixteen 19th- and 20th-century masters are represented by the 21 students, whose efforts have transformed the library into in a small museum of contemporary art. Among the names present are Cézanne, Monet, Matisse, Picasso, Hopper, and Warhol. Two of the artists featured are still alive; and one of them, Portsmouth resident Peter Hussey, is local.