Art in the Park, Banana S tamping in Saipan

2020 ART IN THE PARK ON SAIPAN

American Memorial Park partnered with the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands (CNMI) Carolinian Affairs Office to kick-off the annual Art in the Park program with Banana Painting. This fun and exciting session brought in over 30 participants with several hardworking volunteers who supported the program. Ms. Dellina Lieto from the Carolinian Affairs Office introduced the art of Banana Painting and how it was created by the late Douglas Rankin. Douglas Rankin first got the idea while cleaning up fallen banana trees around his house after a storm. When cutting into the banana tree he saw the By: Nataline Kaneshi, AMME Education Coordinator wonderful patterns from the different layers of the tree – Banana Painting was born. Since then, he decided to put all his paintbrushes away and has used banana trees since then. Over the years, he was able to master the technique of Banana Painting and shared his love of art with many throughout the island. Today, his legacy lives on and the technique he created is still shared throughout the community. Banana Painting, or others may say “stamping,” is an art project both children and adults can enjoy. During the session, Ms. Del cut up some banana stock and was able to show everyone how to create beautiful images, such as flowers, palm trees, a crab and even a turtle. The Art in the Park program allows the community to make connections with their park through art. Every year local artists are selected to share their art with the community by leading an art session inspired by the park.

More art sessions to check out this year are Tangan Tangan Art with Mercilynn Palec, Wood Painting with Meena Benavente and Taps: A Sunset at Sea with Elizabeth Turnball. All are invited to American Memorial Park to participate in these fun art sessions that bring different aspects of the park to life.