Every year around this time there is a massive student art show and awards ceremony that takes place in Jacksonville. It is called the Regional Scholastics Art exhibition and it is one you do not want to miss. Ms. Holloway is on the panel of people who help to transport and curate and hang the award winning artworks at the Main branch of the Jacksonville Public Library right in the heart of downtown. Among a dozen other events, these days hanging the student artwork is my favorite time of year as an art teacher. I might spend more time staring at their work than I actually spend working. These young artists continue to blow my mind and impress my socks off. Like non-stop.
Scholastics is a national art competition for any students ages 13-18. Last year I wrote one of my newspaper columns for EU Jacksonville all about Scholastics (check out January 2019 issue!). This is a juried competition which means that not all submissions are accepted and all entires are judged by category, not age. To clarify ... all students from JWJ (or any middle school for that matter) are up against seniors from Douglas Anderson! The fact that we have JWJ artists winning regional awards says so much more once you realize their competition, right! Yet they keep on winning!!!
This year, we had 24 JWJ students win awards and 3 of them were GOLD MEDALS! Major congratulations to Hawi Said, Sabine Wiley-Bossy, and Helen Tran. They are taking over the world!!!
Ms. Stewart, our 8th grade geometry teacher came out to opening night exhibition gala with me! :)
Only one week after the fabcy red carpet awards ceremony at the Florida Theater for our Scholastics Art award winners, we hosted a special event on our very own campus in honor of James Weldon Johnson. This year marked the anniversary of his beautiful song, "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" and we went all out in celebration!
The 'Weldon Writers' delivered an incredible performance in the auditorium and read excerpts from JWJ's poetry as well as their own originals. The JWJ band played top notch symphony songs for the audience which included parents, faculty, friends, and community members.
We had visiting dance troops and elementary chorus performers and in my personal opinion, the best part of the event was the JWJ art gallery! Art club students and I worked tirelessly on the stage behind the curtain all wek long preparing artwork for display for this event. It turned out AMAZING!!!
Next up, another week later ...
The JWJ art club/ Cathedral Arts Project art club was invited back for a second year in a row to hold art booths and even present a live hands-on workshop at the Jax Maker's Faire at the Museum of Science and History! This was the event of the year, y'all!!!
We got to attend a private dinner party and planetarium show on a Friday night and they let us wander around the museum just for fun after hours, it was magical!!!
The students came up with a script that they rehearsed in the art room every day during lunch for two weeks and on the day of the event, they ended up leading not one, but TWO workshops for the public! They described the history of photography and how science and art are so intertwined. They taught the attendees (over 100 people!) how to create photographic transfers using packaging tape.
Ms. Holloway was brought to tears (of pride, of course) watching these talented young leaders in action. The MoSH staff probably couldn't even tell the difference between the art teacher and the art students because they did such a stellar job! Ms. Sistare came out and assisted in the behind the scenes duties with me all afternoon and I am beyond grateful to her for her support of our art club!
The things art teachers will do to make their students happy .... Bella reeeeeally wanted us to bring this packaging tape figure sculpture to the Maker's Faire so Ms. Holloway drove around town looking like a stright up crazy lady with a plastic person in her passenger seat. This is the art teacher life!
Boy, oh boy, did we have the busiest art club month ever in February!!!
The next public event we worked was extra dear to my heart because I grew up at the beach and one of my other art teacher friends held the first ever "San Pablo Hearts the Arts" social night at San Pablo Elementary just a few minutes from my childhood home!
JWJ art-clubbers were in charge of a collaborative mural area in the school's media center for this fun event. They taught the elementary kids how to paint inside the lines and rely on color theory to create a bright new mural to display in their school. Students of all ages participated in this beautiful group effort and the JWJ artists were there teaching each of them all night long! How much fun !!!
I am completing this blog entry weeks after the month of February because the world has been turned upside down with this corona virus pandemic. My heart swells looking at the magical memories we have made this year and I can not wait to be back in action with my amazing student artists. I miss you all and I hope everyone is staying safe, healthy, and continuing to CREATE ART!!!