New-York tribune., 1909-02-14
WORK OF PUPILS
Interesting Handicroft Erhibit ct
Board Of Education Hall.

| People who thinl, that children are being taught
nothing practical in the public schools OF New
! York have a chance now 70 revise their opinions
They can hardly help doing so + they attend the
citys exhibition OF manual work done in the work
shops and classes Of the schools. which viii be
! opened tomorrow night by Mayor Mcclellan and
other city officials at the Board OF Education.
There was q private opening last night for the
/ benefit Of the committee on vocational schools
There have been small exhibitions Of the work
| done by the school children OF New York. hut
never before have the authorities undertaken any
/ thing large scale The whole Of the great
assembly hall al 5sth street and Park avenue is
used for the display. The west side OF the hall
has been turned into fascinating model fat, and
| the rooTus-whch quite as large as the rooms
! IN ,he average fsthouse-have been fitted Up and
furnished entirely by the chiiGren The walls Of
| the dining room covered with dull red burlap,
! anc there L low plate railing Of stained wood
| The dining table, OF heavy wood. is something or
| the mission style. and around it chairs to
match-au made ny boys in the school carpentry
shops. The table cover. Of white embroidered
damask, designed and made by the girls
Window curtains and portieres Of cream color.
With tulip pattern in red and green On the wall
hammered brass sconces Brass plates adorn
the rack. also some hand painted china plates, the
work OF the girls.
The library is all in green. There is a fireplace
built and stained by the boys on the SPOT one
afternoon last week It must be admitted that the
mural painting over the fireplace IS the work of
grownups. but this painting is the only thing in
the exhibit OF which that can be said. The three
desks In the library prove what artistic work the
children do, and So tco. do the copper and
leather desk accessories. the examples OF seat
Gaming shown in the easy chairs and the hand
some leather foorstooI
There are lessons for the multitude in the rest
fulness of the living room Of this model fiat The
walls in the softest ash brown. with deep
stencilIed freze done in ash brown green and soft
orange II is a conventional design. originally
made for plano cover. but it proved so satisfy
ing that it was readapted for vail use.
Especially worthy OF examination are the small
wall cupboards IN this room. with hinges aud
decorations OF hammered copper. all fashioned ny
public school pupils.
City Superintendent Maxwell and Frederic R
Coudert. chairman Nof the committee on vocational
schools. planned this exhibition in a manner 70
prove not only that the work done in the school
shops is practical carpentry quite advances enough
70 be Of practical value in the commercial sense
but that the art side has not been forgotten
Thousands upon thousands OF New York people
have q hazv idea that normal work means
teaching boys and girls white a few paner
cutters and so forth. How many people outside
the schools know that In the hundred workshops
now connected with the grammar grades between
sixty thousand and seventy thousand children are
having practical lessons in designing and con
and Dr.. Haney. art director Of the schools,
thorfty for the statement that one OF the
articles on view-except the hreplace-was made
for the exhibit: that II was all done in the course
of the ordinary class work No time was taken
outside the regular hours and picked pupils
were asked TO do special pieces" In fact. the
teachers themselves knew nothing Of the Plan OF