By Sophia Lewis ’22
This fall, the Pingry arts department welcomes Ms. Melody Boone to Pingry as a new faculty member. She will be teaching Art Fundamentals and Architecture to Upper School students, as well as an Art and Nature class to Middle School students. In addition, she will run an open studio art class for the middle school and the middle school yearbook.
Ms. Boone went to Virginia Commonwealth University where she earned her B.F.A in Painting and Printmaking. After this, she attended Pratt Institute where she earned her M.F.A in Painting. Before coming to Pingry, Ms. Boone was a teacher of Photography and Art Fundamentals at Nansemond-Suffolk Academy in Virginia for seven years, and she taught an eighth grade art class at the same school for one year.
When asked what inspired her to become a teacher, Ms. Boone said: “I have been an artist my whole life, and I want to be able to share what I love with others. It’s a good thing to be able to share something that you love to do with other people.” When she has free time, she likes to make her own art. “I haven’t had much time to make art recently since I have been so busy getting acclimated to the Pingry environment, figuring out where everything is and getting used to classes. I hope that I can find some time to start making more art again.” She especially likes using many different medias in her work.
Looking forward, Ms. Boone’s goal is to make it through the year and find her groove at Pingry, as the school is still relatively new to her. “I’m still getting used to Pingry – I want the year to run smoothly for me.” On top of that, at some point during the school year, she wants to be able to find a time to do some three-dimensional printing, either on her own or with one of her classes. She would also like to spend some time playing with materials in the art rooms that she teaches in. When asked about her experience at Pingry, Ms. Boone said that she “likes it here so far.” She also commented on the bustling, fast moving nature of the school: “Everyone here is so busy! It feels like Pingry is always buzzing– there is always something to do or somewhere to be.” Ms. Boone hopes to have a great first year!