Art Across the Island

Over 6,500 works of student art have been displayed since Art Across the Island began in 2016. Every Alameda public school has participated in the program and locations including small businesses such as Books Inc., Lilac Dress Boutique, See Spot Run, all three of our city libraries, the College of Alameda library and the K Gallery at Rhythmix Cultural Works.

In 2018, Art Beyond Our Island sent 300 pieces of student artwork to schools impacted by the Camp Fire.

Please stop by and view student art at these locations:

The exhibit, Hidden and Revealed, includes prints of paper maché masks by Lincoln Middle School students and poetry by students at ACLC, Alameda High School, Encinal Middle School and Island High School. From ancient times, masks have told stories of the strong and of those who have been vanquished. Drawing on this history, Lincoln students made masks that combined power, humor and vulnerability. Poetry is an intimate form of literature, where sentence fragments reveal the writer’s feelings and insights. The high school poetry was part of AEF’s 2026 Poetry Slam, Where I Live. To round out the exhibit, the Junior Jets created ZINES filled with words and art.
Thanks goes to Lincoln Middle School’s Ron Johnson, Alameda High School’s Lisa Piazza, Encinal Jr. & Sr. High School's Victoria Traverso, and Island High School’s Amy Haines and everyone at ACLC who contributed to the success of the school’s Poetry Club.

Location: Second Floor, The Main Library
1550 Oak Street
On Display Until: August 10, 2026

Poems by Edison 3rd Grade Students
Classroom Teacher: Jennifer Howell

Edison 3rd grade students in Ms. Howell’s class have been working on a poetry unit, which tied in to the Poetry Slam hosted by AEF. Students learned about poetry and then created their own poems, taking inspiration from our beautiful little island to write about topics like Lincoln Park, the Alameda Free Library, the turkeys, the beach, SubPar, South Shore, and more local favorites. Some of these students came to the Poetry Slam in March to read their poems in front of an audience. Then, all students were invited to add an illustration, bringing their poems to life visually.

Location: First Floor, The Main Library
1550 Oak Street
On Display Until: May 31, 2026

Popsicles by Otis TK Students
Classroom Teacher: Ali Bower

Otis TK students made these delightful 3-D popsicle creations. The class was exploring a broader unit on the 5 Senses. While learning about the Sense of Taste, they were asked to imagine their very own popsicle: “What would it look like and what would it taste like?” They painted their popsicles using tempera paint sticks and watercolor, cut them out, and attached them to popsicle sticks. They created such a fun range of flavors, colors and patterns!

Location: Bay Farm Island Library,
3221 Mecartney Rd
On Display Until: August 31, 2026

Houses by NEA 2nd Grade Students
Art Teacher: Susie McKee
Classroom Teacher: Sarah Singer

NEA 2nd Graders created these whimsical 3-D houses as part of a broader unit on “Trash to Treasure.” Created entirely out of discarded and recycled materials from the community, students were invited to cut out a cardboard house. They wrapped yarn around their cardboard, then used materials like fabric, buttons, ribbon, and silk flowers to create all the beautiful and inventive details. Since there are two classes worth of the same art project, we swap them in a month to make sure both classes are highlighted for their hard work.

Location: West End Library,
788 Santa Clara Ave.
On Display Until: July 1, 2026

Animal art from all 9 elementary schools, from Lincoln and Wood Middle and from Alameda, Encinal and Island High are at See Spot Run in celebration of Art Across the Island’s 10 year anniversary. Most of the prints were part of an animal project including pelicans from Paden, rainforest creatures from Franklin and bears from Earhart. But some are examples of students choosing to make an animal as part of a larger project, like the child from Maya Lin who made a towering dragon while classmates were making paper bridges and the Otis student who painted a cat as part of their Paul Klee watercolor project. The work spans the decade with art from 2016, on through the Pandemic and into the present year.

Location: See Spot Run,
1320 Park Street
On Display Until: September 15, 2026

Books Inc.’s partnership with AEF began in Fall 2016 with student art displays. Poetry took center stage two years later when Alameda students wrote poems for school children who were impacted by the Camp Fire. Much of the writing that was sent on to Paradise was showcased at Books Inc. The 10th Year Anniversary exhibit includes Haiku and Shape poetry as well as paintings based on children’s books (including Black: The Many Wonders of my World illustrated by Maya Lin’s Constance Moore). There is also student art that ties in with work that is available at Books Inc. like cook books and science fiction. Books Inc. was been the site of three AEF Poetry Slams, which featured students reading autobiographical work as well as nature poetry and poems about our city.

Location: Books Inc. Alameda,
1344 Park Street
On Display Until: September 23, 2026

Please consider a donation to keep arts alive for Alameda students.