From Sea to Sea!
The Viktor Schreckengost Mangbetu Award Art Student Group Exhibition
Community Gallery Exhibit: January 6th – March 13th, 2026
Reception: Saturday, January 10th from 5pm-6pm
Free and open to all
Attleboro Arts Museum, 86 Park Street, Attleboro, MA
Seven Attleboro Arts Museum teen art students will showcase multiple linocut prints in From Sea to Sea! The Viktor Schreckengost Mangbetu Award Art Student Group Exhibition held in the Museum’s Community Gallery from January 6th – March 13th, 2026.
Teen art students range from grades 9-12 and created these pieces over the Museum’s fall session of art classes under the knowledge and guidance of AAM Art Educator, Lisa Granata who will also show two prints alongside her students in this exhibition.
Since 2009, the Attleboro Arts Museum has presented the Viktor Schreckengost Mangbetu Award, an annual recognition granted to an outstanding AAM art student. Viktor Schreckengost (1906-2008) was a prolific inventor, designer, artist and teacher whose creations have touched on nearly every aspect of American life. Viktor’s legacy continues by saluting the arts achievement, commitment, and visual creativity within our Museum School. Student recipients have ranged in age since the launch, the youngest only 8 years old at the time of their exhibition.
In 2019, the award program was expanded to honor teams of exhibiting students. Each group exhibit spotlights one of Viktor’s areas of interest or an art media that he enjoyed.
This year’s invitational art student group exhibition is inspired by a series of Viktor’s ceramic sculptures titled “The Seasons: Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring” (shown to the right). Viktor’s sequence of four masklike ceramic heads, created in 1938, feature floral and plant life embellishments representing each season.
Viktor produced many masklike heads in clay during the 1930s that were made by taking a vessel form and modifying it slightly. He would push out the clay wall to create a nose or chin and poke through the clay wall to create eyes or mouths. He did not attempt to change the basic cylinder shape by adding naturalistic features but kept the design simple, creating a stylized sculpture.
Attleboro Arts Museum teen art students were automatically invited to participate in From Sea to Sea! by submitting a completed class assignment that responded to Viktor Schreckengost’s “The Seasons” heads. In addition, and as a nod to the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, students incorporated iconic flora and geographical features of the US such as the Rocky Mountains, Saguaro cacti, cherry blossoms and more into their linocut portrait designs.
“This inspiration was a unique challenge in printmaking for our teens, some experiencing the linocut method for the first time. With distinct emphasis on line, stylized facial features and high contrast, students created bold and energetic one-of-a-kind prints that ultimately enhanced their understanding of printmaking and illustration,” remarks Abby Rovaldi, AAM Programs Coordinator.