Tallulah: Leaping Water

This past weekend, we welcomed our preschool families into the Atelier for our spring Tallulah Family Workshop. Our Tallulah project began in 2005 after being awarded a grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts. Over the last couple decades, our Tallulah tiles have spread across the walls of our preschool, leaving the legacy of the families and children that helped create them.

The name Tallulah was chosen for its Native American meaning of Leaping Water. Water is essential to all living things in our Sonoran Desert and can have a transformational impact on the desert surroundings. In this way, children and their families are like the water in the desert – both essential and transformational  to our community of learning.

The beautiful clay Tallulah tiles are now simply synonymous with PPP. They have become a recognizable feature of who we are - from Pinnacle Peak peaking over the window of the Owl class to the Atelier Tree, Cottonwood Tree, and Havasupai Falls by the water fountains. Underneath Houdini’s home, our desert tortoise, are the bright orange Poppies and Schools of Fish. The tiles encircle our preschool campus with the Water, Desert, and Desert Wash projects interspersed throughout.

We are excited to begin work on our next project - adding beautiful Tallulah tiles to our new security wall by our front entry gate. The security wall is a new addition this year and we are grateful for the peace of mind it allows keeping our children safe while on our campus. We know the addition of these legacy Tallulah tiles will have a meaningful and welcoming impact at our preschool entrance.