Woodland students create Faberge eggs, talk to Faberge family

Susan Trammel’s fourth hour art class at Woodland High School corresponded directly with the great-granddaughter of the original creator of the Faberge egg.

And it all started with baskets of donated Easter eggs.

Trammel sought an art project for her students with the donated products, and one of her students, Jaxen Reinmann, happened to have a personal connection to Faberge eggs through his family’s heritage.

“My grandfather used to have them, and these were from his father,” Reinmann said, having vivid memories of seeing them as a child. “These came from my family in Russia.”

A table near Woodland High School’s entrance and in front of the Warrior Dome gym displays the many Faberge egg creations from her class, including eggs designed to look like frogs, ones holding jewelry, others holding rings, a creation made with enamel and another as a bird in its nest.

The assignment was to create an egg and its stand, and her students’ imaginations took it from there.

The lesson didn’t stop there, however. Trammel’s students were encouraged not only to create their own Faberge eggs, but also to research their history, style and cultural significance.

The students quickly learned Peter Carl Faberge was the original artist/creator of the 50 Faberge Imperial Easter Egg Series created for the Russian imperial families of the 1800s and early 1900s. The Faberge family, however, lost its name in a court battle to American merchants and only just recently won the rights back to their own name.

To further enhance their study, students contacted Sarah Faberge, Peter’s great granddaughter and the founding member of the Faberge Heritage Council, and had five of their questions answered by email, including if she had a favorite egg. She indicated the first one is where the Faberge story started.

“I’m really impressed with how they took and ran with it,” Trammel said of the project, noting the class worked two to three weeks on its research and its art projects, including students taking extra time during homerooms, before and after classes to work on their pieces.