Red River Area Learning Center students and Minnesota State University Moorhead teacher education students collaborated on a gallery project “from hate: finding beauty” based on the “The Book Thief.” The resulting gallery, with the students’ art and artist statements, was displayed April 14 at Moorhead Center Mall.

Earlier this semester, the students read “The Book Thief” and learned how Liesel, the protagonist in Markus Zusak’s book, experiences a wide range of emotion in her journey as a foster child in Nazi Germany. As she learns truth, something becomes apparent — from hatred can come beauty.

The students examined how in their own lives, as they experience fear, discrimination, pain and struggle, they can find elements of joy and triumph.

The Red River ALC and MSUSM students spent six weeks working together to create a response to Liesel’s journey by using art to represent the beauty they find, despite the hate in the world. As the two groups collaborated to understand Liesel’s journey, they found truth in each others’ journey as well — despite differences in age, race, socio-economic status or home towns, they found woven into their lives death and life, pain and joy, struggle and triumph.