Central Middle School recently had a strong showing at the North Carolina Association for Scholastic Activities Saint Mary’s School Art Showcase State Exhibition and Competition, claiming the most state champions and highest overall score of any middle school in the competition.
The showcase, held at the UNC Greensboro College of Visual and Performing Arts, challenges artists of different media from different schools in a judged competition that awards both individual and group prizes. Media categories include painting, drawing, printmaking, mixed media, collage, and more. Students create their artwork and enter the competition by submitting digital images of their work. Top students’ works from each category progress to the statewide competition and are evaluated by judges in-person.
Central Middle School received recognition for having the highest number of participants from their school and was awarded $1,000 for art supplies. Students placed in all of the categories, while Tania Hernandez received the Best In Show Distinction for her sculpture titled “A New Beginning.” Jackson Wilmoth won first place in the drawing category for his piece “Doc’s Day” and Annabella Needham won first place in painting for her piece “My Favorite Person.”
Teaghan Gillispie took home second place with her piece “First Flight,” and Kaya Galyean won second place in printmaking. Cameron Cruise, Alexander Villa Senor, and Phaolina Ortiz also took home second place recognitions in the mixed media, collage, and digital media categories.
“I am honored to have led such an amazingly talented group of young artists and I am extremely proud of their accomplishments,” said Wanda Bowman, visual arts teacher at Central Middle. “This was our first team competition and the experience was surreal for us. A special thank you goes out to each artist as it was an experience of a lifetime for us all.”
Gentry Middle School, North Surry High School, and Surry Central High School were also amongst the competition winners. Gentry Middle School placed third in the state for its overall score and student participation. North Surry and Surry Central High Schools both placed within the top ten state rankings for their scores and student participation.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com