Graduation Projects at Watershed
Each spring, Watershed Seniors are expected to design and complete a project to fulfill a graduation requirement.
In the European guild tradition, apprentice or journeymen craftspeople must eventually prepare a project illustrating their mastery of basic skills developed during their years as craftspeople in training. This project marks their passage to membership in the guild community. Graduation Project at the Watershed School is an opportunity for students to illustrate mastery of the skills and understanding gained during their high school years and as such is a mark of passage to adult life. Students may pose an essential question, such as “What is Community?” or “What is Art?” or “What is Freedom?” Or they may pose a more focused question within a particular discipline. They answer their question through research and creative work, producing a multidisciplinary project that they present to the Watershed community.
- A completed Graduation Project at the Watershed School has two or three components:
- A written thesis (required).
- A formal presentation (required).
- A product in addition to a written thesis (optional).
Class of '08 Present their Projects
Mariel Dowling: Translation of the Popol Vuh
Mariel showing slides of Antigua, Guatemala
Mariel's project was two-fold: a intensive language immersion program in Guatemala, and the translation of the Mayan sacred text, the Popol Vuh. Mariel showed slides of her surroundings and host family and then read from the introduction of her project paper before reading us a particularly gory part of the translation text
Mariel has consistently demonstrated great skill as a writer throughout her tenure at Watershed, and her reading of the introduction ran true to form. She read from a passage about how the project came to be while weaving in vignettes of her Guatemalan experience.
Bates College is where Mariel heads in the fall. Her determined presence will be sorely missed here at Watershed, although of course we wish her all the best. We hope that she makes frequent visits back to her alma mater next year.
Alex Brandt: Depression in Youth
Alex Brandt talking about depression in youth
Abbie Nugent
Abbie Nugent reading from her story
Isaac Gerard:The circus in America
Isaac talking about the history of the Circus
Sam Auciello: Boatbuilding
Sam is building the Core Sound 16
Class of '07 Present their Projects
Danji Buck-Moore: Musical Composition
Danji with the score of his magnus opus
Danji composed and arranged a contemporary piece of music and premiered it with Watershed students as performers. Danji's composition, titled Four Dimensions, is scored for Fender Rhodes, viola, violin, and tenor sax. There was a standing ovation for the performance at St. Peter's Church, in Rockland.
Weaving classical themes with salsa rhythms, Danji's work echoed various musical traditions and genres in a manner both accessible and intellectually interesting. "I just wanted to explore the music that I am drawn to," explained Danji as he showed his score to the audience. The score was written using modern composition software. Let's hope this is just the first of many musical offerings springing from the talented mind of one of Watershed's founding students.
Listen to Danji's composition here.
Lilly Whitehead: Timeless fashion design and construction
Lilly with her sartorial designs
Lilly has been playing with fabric and clothing for many years, but with this project, she has ramped up her efforts to understand what makes a something "timeless" in clothing design. She spent a great deal of effort looking back throughout fashion history to see if she could identify themes that keep popping up over the years. Eventually she identified several types of garment that have been modified little over the years, and working from those, designed her own set of classic pieces, including a vest, a shirt, and a formal dress. Her craftsmanship is evident in every stitch.
Lilly is currently traveling around the wild lands of the USA on the Audubon Expedition bus.
Lizzy Moore: Design and Construction of an Electric Violin
Lizzy playing on her own creation
Lizzy brought her incredible intensity and focus to the design and construction of an electric violin. Lizzy had to learn a whole new set of skills to pull off this project including scale drawing, power tool use, and instrument acoustics. The finished product is remarkable for its striking visual appeal as well as its sonorous quality. The instrument is the real embodiment of what this senior project idea is all about: a focused stretch to increase knowledge and skill.
Lizzy is now enrolled in a program for Viola and Conducting at the North Carolina School for the Arts.
Brian Payson: Sword and Chain Mail
Brian wielding his sword and armor
Brian constructed an impressive sword and chain mail glove. Hefting the sword gives a real sense of what it must have been like in medieval times during battle. A few minutes of cutting and slashing and your arm is completely worn out!
Brian has been able to dovetail Watershed's curriculum with that of the Midcoast School of Technology. He attended classes at the Technology school in machining and welding, and this project has coupled his longstanding interest in the history of weaponry with the technical skills of welding and fabricating.
Now he's at an industrial arts program in Central Maine studying CNC machining.
Katy Dodge: Traditional Pottery
Some of Katy Dodge's pottery
Katy worked with Watershed faculty member Sherry Fraser on a set of very interesting clay pieces that were fired using an age old open firing technique.
Inspired by the craft of indigenous potter Maria Martinez of San Ildefonso Pueblo, Katy experimented with pinch pot, coil-pot forms, glazing, burnishing, and pit-fired ceramics. She created clay body and glazes, experimented with saggar-firing, and conducted test firings.
In addition to the completed ceramic wares, Katy wrote a paper detailing her research and experiences.
Katy's now at College of the Atlantic.
Sam Perkins: Small Boat Voyage
Sam embarking on his intrepid voyage
Sam Perkins decided to follow in his father's footsteps (dad's a Coast Guard Officer) and go sailing. He planned and executed a four-day-long spring voyage in the Weedabob, beloved craft of Watershed Faculty member Pete Kalajian.
Sam treated the audience to a gripping tale of harrowing adventure in strong winds and challenging weather conditions. To anyone familiar with the waters of Penobscot Bay, a May voyage in a 15' long open sailing boat is bound to be a real adventure, and Sam's fit the bill: anchor dragging, double reefing, hard beats, rain.
Sam wrote a paper about the voyage, but long after the paper is a faded yellow document, this trip will still be etched on Sam's memory as one of the great coming of age stories.
Sam is now plying the waters around Bar Harbor as a student at the College of the Atlantic