The Onofrio curriculum development project launched with a visit to the studio of assemblage artist Judy Onofrio in Rochester, Minnesota. The experience was almost spiritual as we toured Judy’s own personal “Judyland”. We started in her encrusted foyer and ended in her spectacular garden.

The curriculum team was impressed with the power and memories attributed to the objects Judy Onofrio showed us in drawer upon drawer. The team even invented the term “memoryware” as the best word to describe the special found objects we hope will be used in our unit’s assemblage sculptures. We have read that Judy is an outsider artist, although her work appears in many museums.

This curriculum unit was developed by Carl Anderson of Grand Rapids, Dave Beaman of The Perpich Center for Arts Education, Barbara Rogers Bridges of Bemidji State University and Coordinator for ArtsNetMN, Therese Cacek of Holdingford, Judith Christoffersen of Moorhead, Kathryn Gainey of St. Cloud State, Kathy Grundei of the Blake School, Judi Onofrio of Rochester, Judi Petkau of the Frederick R. Weisman Art Museum, Diane Scully of Columbia Heights, and Artist Rhonda Smedstad of St. Cloud.

After our visit to the Onofrio studio, the curriculum team returned to our respective places in the world and collaboratively developed a unit plan finally called Remembering like Judy – Studying the Work of Judy Onofrio. Each teacher developed the unit in an entirely unique way. Click on their names in the lesson plans or on the teacher threads page to view their specific journey. You will see collaborative projects and unique messages from students' personal life-worlds.