Student Artist Showcase Was A Virtual Success

COMMUNITY NEWS

Student Artist Showcase Was A Virtual Success

The Arts Council of Greater Weston has held a Student Artist Showcase (SAS) for the past 14 years. It has usually hung in the Weston Branch Library for the month of May. There was an award ceremony for the student artists and their parents and the Weston Mayor and City Commission presented the awards.

Needless to say, the pandemic created havoc with that format. (DID WE DO ANYTHING IN 2020 AND DOES THAT MAKE THIS THE 13TH OR 14TH EVENT?)

So, SAS Director Gryssele Machicote did a swift pivot to a virtual event. She contacted the school art teachers, who selected artwork from 2020 and 2021 to date. They sent in pictures of their selections, with name, grade, and school included. Gryselle commented,

“Without their enthusiastic participation, we could not have made this happen.

We are grateful to the teachers who, on behalf of their talented students, helped ensure these deserving artists were recognized”. There were six participating schools represented by 11 Art Staff members.

Over 150 pieces of art were presented ranging from grades Pre-K through 12. They represented a variety of media, including ceramics, acrylic, colored pencil, ink, marker, and photography to name a few. Every participant received a ribbon and a certificate of participation.

You can see the entire exhibition on www.1weston.com. So far, there have been 495 views, which is a tribute to the outstanding quality of the art. President Laura Dobranzski noted, “We are delighted to support these very special students. It is wonderful that STEM has become STEAM and includes the Arts, recognizing the creativity and critical thinking benefits it gives students. We hope to personally meet them all in 2022 and celebrate their accomplishments together.”