MaryKatherine Michiels-Kibler, Counselor, or simply MK, is a San Francisco native who frequently finds herself in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. She recently returned home from living in Florence, Italy for nine months where she studied history and photography and saw more art than she thought was physically possible in a year. In the fall, she will return to Sarah Lawrence College in New York where she studies writing and film. MK loves working with youth of all ages, especially if it involves creativity and nature. An Oxbow Summer Camp alumna, she is excited to return and hopes to learn and grow as much as a counselor as she did as a camper.
The art that goes on in most high schools is usually relatively skill-based. At Oxbow, there is more emphasis on looking and seeing and more critical thinking about what you are doing, the human connection, that personal element. Through art you can begin to understand yourself better. That may be the biggest eye-opener for students. It is almost a preview of college. Get out of the mechanical factory high school education and get into something open, new, and invigorating in a small environment.
— Bill Barrett, Former Oxbow Board Member, Former Executive Director of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art & Design (AICAD)
The Oxbow School has both a local and national reputation for excellence. Oxbow produces great artists. In its studio, these emerging artists have a community of creative peers who respect one another and foster an expectation to produce thoughtful, sophisticated work.
— Paul Coffey, Vice Provost and Dean of Community Engagement, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago
If at any point Oxbow doubts the good it does, I just want to reassure you all that you’re changing the lives of young artists every semester.
— Colin Davis, Fall 2009
A School Like No Other