The 2024-2025 Program of Studies at Lexington High School presents an all-new, interdisciplinary science and visual arts course: Bioart.
Bioart was proposed by Paul Belenky, a visual arts teacher at LHS with a background in both science and art. Belenky suggested the idea to Alethea Roy, LHS’s art department head, and has since gotten approval to teach the course.
“When I got to LHS, Alethea, who’s our department head, was asking me, ‘if I could design any class, what would it be?’ And I said, ‘Bioart’ and she was like, ‘Yes, let’s do it!’ And now it’s happening,” Belenky said.
Belenky and Roy then brought their proposal to Reginald Hobbs, the LHS science department head. Hobbs approved of the semester-long elective after ensuring that it had a sufficient science component.
“I’m super excited that we’re able to offer it. I’ve been working with Ms. Roy for a couple of years to try and figure out if we could run an interdisciplinary course,” Hobbs said.
In the class, students will learn both laboratory techniques and biological concepts.
“I’m really excited about doing some culinary arts with students and thinking about how we use microbial processes, microbiology, and the understanding of bacterias to preserve foods by fermenting and pickling,” Belenky said.
Although some students may be surprised that this directly relates to art, Belenky believes that art does not have to be solely visual.
“I think we can kind of broaden our horizons a little bit as to what is art. Art is a way for people to communicate, engage with each other, share ideas, and I think that making foods, sharing them, understanding that process and creating all fits close enough,” Belenky said.
Belenky has planned other unique projects as well, including the use of leaves as a photographic medium. He aims to supplement his projects with biology readings.
“There’s going to be a little bit of bio reading and bio learning just so we can all get on the same page about what we’re talking about. And then a lot of group project based work time,” Belenky said.
By incorporating both science and art, Belenky hopes to attract a diverse group of students to the Bioart course, allowing students to attain both science and art credits.
“It’s for students who view themselves as art students and want some science, for those students who view themselves as science students and want some science, and for anyone else who thinks this is cool,” Belenky said.
Hobbs similarly believes that the class will show students that art and science can be integrated together, providing a unique opportunity for students interested in multiple subjects.
“I think it’s a great opportunity to take knowledge and apply it across disciplines. There’s going to be the intersection of multiple different fields, and STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) is where a lot of things are going,” Hobbs said.
Ultimately, Belenky hopes that Bioart will be a fun and inspiring experience for students, rather than a solely theoretical class like others offered at LHS.
“I hope it can instead be like a seed. Students who maybe in the past were hesitant about science, are now going to have more excitement or a different way to look at it. And same thing with art,” Belenky said.
