2022 Honors Visual Art Exhibition

Savanah Lee
AGAPE High School
Grade 10
Venus Flytrap
Etching on paper
4” x 5.5”

This was my first print. I found it physically tiring and it took a while to build up the background. I usually draw people so I was unfamiliar with making an image of a plant. I learned that printmaking is time-consuming but rewarding.

Jennifer Pliego
AGAPE High School
Grade 12
Self portrait
Graphite powder on paper
18’’ x 24’’

My art is a representation of real life and of the artistic world. With my self portrait, I learned how to manipulate how some see me on paper and how it’s the same in real life. Working with graphite was a challenge, but it highlighted many blacks and whites in my face that people can’t see. Taking my time working on my drawing, I took note of every little detail of my face so it can be as similar as I could possibly make it. This piece of art is very important to me because I worked very hard and I tried to make it as perfect as I could. My self portrait wants to tell a story that could be felt when someone looks at my eyes and face.

Megan Harun
Central Senior High School
Grade 11
The Faces of Bali
Graphite
12” x 16”

My art depicts hard working women in Balinese culture based on a traditional ceremony for Hindus to thank the gods for winning the war to abolish evil. When I created this art, I discovered the beauty of women in Bali and their great influence on society in various fields of social life. I also learned that I like to connect my story to my art. Therefore, this art is important to me because it relates to a part of myself as a Balinese girl and an exchange student who should be a good representation of my origin area in another country.

Fong Her
Central Senior High School
Grade 10
Stream of Petals
Tempera Paint
8” x 10”

The story of my art is about a person who’s accepting life and where it’s leading their choices. I learned that I should have more of an open mind and shouldn’t overthink situations. This painting is important to me because it shows my progress as an artist.

Michael Walbran
Central Senior High School
9th Grade
Unclear
Graphite
12” x 16”

This art was an exercise in both my own patience and my way of interpreting my surroundings. During the process of its creation, it tested my ability to focus on the still world around me and represent it on paper after having been filtered through my own perspective, which was a significant challenge. It holds a certain importance to me, as it is a reminder that I can keep focused and keep doing well, even if circumstances are difficult.

George Slaats
Central Senior High School
Grade 11
Dragonfly on a Log
Ceramics
5” x 3” x 3.5” 

This piece shows a decomposing log with three mushrooms growing out of it and a dragonfly resting its wings. The rapid movement that the dragonfly represents is juxtaposed with the calm serenity of the log. This piece was a fun challenge to create, as it incorporated a variety of techniques, methods, materials and textures.

Lile Kaplow
Central Senior High School
Grade 11
Mother’s Compensation Mug
Ceramic
3.5” dia. x 5”

This mug is inspired by quarantine and the winter weather. It is a culmination of all of the feelings and colors that come with the recent pandemic and winter season. Creating this piece enabled me to try new glazes and practice my throwing techniques on the wheel. I went into throwing this mug without much visualization for what I wanted it to be, but once I was on the wheel, I felt like this mug just resonated with the changes that have occurred due to its more modern contemporary form and abstract glazing.

Lily McCann
Central Senior High School
Grade 12
Pond Box
Ceramics
5” x 4”

This ceramic box was made so that it looks like a pond on the surface, but when it opens, it looks down into the bottom where two fish are swimming. One challenge I faced was carving the fish to make them look somewhat realistic and fit the size of the box. I also struggled with glazing because some of the colors turned out differently than I expected. Going forward, I think I’ll try to use an underglaze to make the colors more vibrant and avoid them being blended together. That being said, I’m happy with how my pond box turned out. I tried something new and the time that was put into it was worthwhile.

Unnamed
Central Senior High School
Grade 11
Crossing Swords Pendant
aluminum, Sharpie marker, glue

May Saize Xiong
Central Senior High School
Grade 11
Flower Pendant
Aluminum, Sharpie marker, glue
3” x 3 ¼”

Unnamed
Central Senior High School
Grade 11
Bee Pin
Aluminum, Sharpie marker, glue
2 ¼” x 1”

Isabella Wogstad
Como Park Senior High School
Grade 9
Netsuke Studies
8.5” x 11”

The first drawing is about a fox sketch that I made that has a little fungus and is taking a nice little nap. I thought it was a cute design and I went along with it. The second one was a mixture between a turtle and a fox. The Inspiration I got was from the school pet turtle that I had been taking care of. I thought it would be a cool idea to make it similar to that to make a fox and a turtle together. The third one was supposed to be an inspiration from an artist I saw online similar to a lucky cat. And twins or siamese twins fused together.

Vanessa
Como Park Senior High School
Grade 9
Care/Love
13.8” x 22”

This painting is of my younger cousin who always comes over on the weekends to spend time with my brother and i. The story behind the painting is that every single day he’s over we have to draw, we always draw. He got distracted by his sister, he took the fidget toy she was playing with and started playing with it himself. I chose to paint this memory because it reminds me of all distractions there are when you’re trying to focus on something right in front of you.

Dontajah
Como Park Senior High School
Grade 10
My Brother
13.75” x 16.75”

In my piece I mixed two class projects into one; Love & Care and Landscape.

For Love & Care, I chose my little brother because he's my best friend. He's always wanted me to paint something for him. I tried to center my focus on my brother while also being attentive to the landscape details. In this painting, I used tempera paint and colored pencil for smaller details like the braids my brother has.

Mairin Blank
Como Park Senior High School
Grade 10
Landscape
Tempera on paper
14” x 22”

My painting is an experiment on color in nature. I used unnatural colors in order to make the landscape scene exciting and different but still recognizable as a natural scene. I loved working with the new colors and playing with shadows, and layers in my painting. I learned how to use tools, like color, to develop my own art style.

Alexis Spiegelberg
Como Park Senior High School
Grade 12
Not Vanitas
Tempera on paper
14” x 22”

My art shows a butterfly that is very much alive, thus being “Not Vanitas”. During the creation of my painting, I learned that landscapes are enjoyable to create, even if it is not a real one. This artwork is important to me because it includes certain elements I like, as well as that I asked someone important to me, about vaguely what I should make the painting of.

Sam Eiken
Como Park Senior High School
Grade 12
Arduinna
Digital Illustration
14” x 22”

This illustration is based on a Celtic goddess, Arduinna, who is often shown as a huntress riding a boar. Mythology inspires me and my art because I love to draw stories, and I think that mythology is one of the best, most human ways to express ourselves and explore history.

Alexis Wolf
Grade 10
Como Park Senior High School
Control
Pencil & Colored Pencil
7” x 7”

This piece is about control. Underneath the mask is a person longing to escape the reality of being controlled.

Phoebe Finlay
Como Park Senior High
Grade 10
Lord of the Rings
Digital

My piece is inspired by the final ‘Lord of the Rings’ movie. I wanted to illustrate that scene because of how impactful it was to me.  I changed the background to another landscape in ‘The Hobbit’ to encapsulate how beautiful the rest of the movies were in their landscapes and environments.

Marie Yang
Grade 10
Como Park Senior High
Born Again
Pencil Drawing
14” x 14”

I want to express how I view myself evolving. My past self is being ripped away and is replaced by something better or worse.

Rodney
Creative Arts Secondary School
Grade 12
Feathered Friends Thumbnail
Digital Art
1080 pixels x 1920 pixels

So I’m currently making an animated series called FreeFalling and I wanted to make a thumbnail for the first episode. For the thumbnail I took a scene that I think is very iconic, it’s right after Charles (the monkey) falls out of a tree and mudsy (the axolotl) goes over to check out what all the noise is about. 

It’s a really impactful scene to me, because without this scene, the story just wouldn’t be the same.

Damien
Creative Arts Secondary School
Grade 11
Princess and Knight
Digital Art
1080 pixels x 1920 pixels

This is a piece depicting my original characters in a dramatic scene-like portrait. With the pose, details of blood, and the slightly romantic undertones adding a little bit of narrative to it.

Originally, this was an art assignment about applying the characteristics of a historical art style. I favor baroque for its classic painting style and dramatic lighting and movement.

Blending established rules with the artist's personal spin is my favorite part of art and a running theme in this piece. The mixing of fairytale tropes, the baroque period itself, even digital painting are part of that.

Zach
Creative Arts Secondary School
Grade 12
Untitled 
Autodesk Sketchbook 
2700 pixels x 3500 pixels

This piece, Untitled, is a drawing based off of a dream I had a while ago. It’s about memories. It takes place at the foot of Vulcan, a statue in my old childhood home. It was a memory that came up; it was at night and we took a long hike at night to the top part of the trail, next to a water tower. It was one of the highest points of the city. I made eye contact with the distant skyscrapers. 

The night sky was almost green with the mix of starlight and city light. I remember being 9, eating stale beef jerky and laughing until I felt as if I passed out. I am older now. This memory revisited me in a dream. It was me, the same age I was now. It was different. The scenery was exactly the same. The cicadas drilled in the distant hot summer air clung as fog rose. Just like in my memories.

What was different was me. I wasn’t laughing. I was smiling. But there was a feeling of nostalgia as the night wind kicked my hair up.

Olivia
Gordon Parks High School
Grade 11
Mountain Landscape
Watercolor Painting
12” x 18”

The process of doing this painting was a bit challenging because I wanted it to look realistic. Doing this painting made me feel at peace because it was a landscape of nature and I love nature. The challenge I had while making this was trying to blend the colors, especially the mountains. It took a lot of time. I struggled trying to get the right shades of blue which was hard because there were a lot of different shades. I think seeing the end results was a good feeling because it just all came together and to me it came out better than I expected but the thing I felt really good about is the quality of the shading on the mountains. That's the one thing I’m most proud of in my painting.

Ruqayyah 
Gordon Parks High School
Grade 12
Ocean Scene
Watercolor Painting
12” x 18”

My art tells the story of peace. What I discovered is that even the smallest thing is still important in creating and completing the work. Also, I learned that I enjoy painting with watercolor. This painting is important to me because I feel that I captured a relaxing scene.

Jazmin
Gordon Parks High School
Grade 11
Locs
Pastel
18” x 24”

For me I would say the story my art tells is about a girl who looks happy but is actually fighting her demons inside her head. The only way you can really tell is by looking into her eyes and seeing how hurt she really is. One thing I discovered about my art is that you can capture the good and bad features about someone in a portrait. This artwork is important because this is my first time doing a portrait of myself and if I do say so myself it's pretty darn good.

Melody Yang
Harding Senior High School
Grade 10
My City
Digital image 
21” x 22.5” 

The title of my work is, “My City”, is 1620 by 1500 pixels and digitally drawn. My art piece is how I would imagine if I had my own city. This piece represents my safe space, freedom, and closure from the rest of the world. This is how I would see if I had a city of my own, which consists of many mythical-like creatures. My city looks a bit rundown, but still consists of a magical-like touch to it.

Belladona
Harding Senior High School
Grade 9
Street Scene
Tempera on watercolor paper
9” x 12”

My art shows my years of experience with painting. The expressive colors and lines in my painting represent the years of love, fun, laughter and smiles from my childhood. Something I learned while creating this artwork is that it takes time, effort and commitment to accomplish and complete something beautiful and fun. This artwork is important to me because it reminds me of my younger years, and how it got me to where I am now.

LeAsia Johnson-Brown
Harding Senior High School
Grade 12
Anxiety
Acrylic on Canvas
16” x 20”

My artwork shows an expression of myself and the things I’ve been through without words,  instead with colors and shapes.  I like how one little thing in a painting can mean multiple things. The struggles I had with this process was just trusting myself to be comfortable with expressing my feelings… I am next?  AM I NEXT?  and with mixing colors.  I feel like the part of my artwork that I’m really proud of was the broken head with the butterflies and flowers coming out; I felt like it was going to look weird but it looks amazing.

Jennifer 
Harding Senior High School
Grade 11
Our Internal Perspectives
Digital drawing
16” x 21”

My artwork expresses the journey of the internal conflict within one’s mind concerning negative thoughts. Through the process of creating this art piece, I wanted to have the viewers consider how one’s internal conflicts can affect their perspective on what they can achieve and one’s life. This artwork is important to me because it doesn’t only apply to me, but it also applies to people around the world.

Noemi Garzon Villanueva
Harding Senior High School 
Grade 12
The Witch of Aiaia
Digital drawing
16” x 20”

I wanted to create a portrait of Circe, the nymph who was exiled by her father Helios to live in solitude forever, for being a witch and transforming another nymph into a monster. I recently read the book Circe, and each story told about her was intriguing, but sad. Because of this, I wanted to represent all the inner resentment and other negative emotions she must have felt in this piece, while still including all the beauty of her herbs and plants — the nature she used in her witchcraft.

Hleeci (Shiny)
Harding Senior High School
Grade 12
Journey Through the Sky
Ink drawing 
12” x18”

With my love for fantasy and creativity, I intended to make an ink drawing using the hatching shading value technique. Since bunnies are cute and soft, I felt like they would bring a calming and adventurous feel to the artwork, so I created two huge bunnies. For the background, I was inspired by a scene from Studio Ghibli's animation film, Spirited Away. I also incorporated my interests into the artwork. I drew desserts, fruits, and melons. I wanted to show something mystical and out of the world with a fantasy theme.

Angelica Amador
Highland Park Senior High School
Grade 10
Noname
Watercolor painting
12” x 18”

My painting tells the story of a person allowing themself to let go and get lost in their art. As I was creating this painting, I realized that the process of making art could be way more loose and spontaneous than I previously thought, and I discovered that I was capable of this kind of approach to my own art. This painting is important to me because it is the tangible result of a person discovering new facets of themself through their art and allowing them to flourish.

Xander Eikenberry
Highland Park Senior High School
Grade 11
Riddles in the Dark
Graphite
12” x 18”

I chose to draw Gollum from the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. This piece is important to me because it shows my process in learning to build up light and dark values within my art. Throughout this process I have learned how art can be a tool to relieve stress and express creativity all while in a low risk environment. While I may not have started this project without it being assigned, I adapted it to be my own, an expression of me.

Zhara Christopher
Highland Park Senior High School
Grade 11
No Time
Acrylic Painting 
12” x 18”

This is a painting of a teen that’s head turned into a TV while also being trapped inside a TV. In the painting, I wanted to express my struggle with balancing school and entertainment. I had grown up watching a lot of TV and it became a way for me to cope with the stress that came with school. Every year school would get harder and I would consume mass amounts of media. This year I have focused on balancing it and focusing on my future. My hope is that this piece lets people know they are not the only ones struggling.

Angelina Crooks
Highland Park Senior High School
Grade 10
Blue Bowl of Vibrance
Watercolor 
9” x 12”

My art shows the still life of fruit in a bowl surrounded by other objects. I learned that I love painting vibrant things. Adding more vibrancy than the original photo added more life to the painting. This artwork is important to me because it helped me explore different color combinations and it was also challenging.

Julian Falk
Highland Park Senior High School
Grade 9
Seafoam Conch
Ceramic
5” x 5.5” x 4.5”

This piece of artwork is special to me because I had a lot of fun working on it. It didn't really feel like I was completing an assignment for class. I enjoyed the building aspect as well as the glazing. I used many techniques that were unfamiliar to me, and I learned a lot while making it.

Madeline Baggenstoss 
Highland Park Senior High School
Grade 12
Oceanic Seed Pod
Ceramics
5” x 5.5” x 4.5”

The intent of this piece was to create a fictional seed pod that looked both alien and alive. It is interesting to consider what this seed may look like once it grows into a plant. The patterns containing round shapes and cool colors used on the seed pod suggest that it came from or lives in the ocean. I experimented with different methods of applying glaze while creating this piece.

Ar Ri
Humboldt High School
Grade 12
Self Portrait
Marker, colored pencil 
12” x 18”

The goal of this project is to be the best I can be. The most important thing about my art is probably the body and the face because it was hard for me to draw. This work means a lot to me because it symbolizes my love of soccer. I had good games and made everyone proud. I had a hard time drawing the face so I made it a mask.

Dee
Humboldt High School
Grade 12
Untitled
Marker
15” x 14”

The goal of this project was to create an artwork using expressive lines and shapes. The most important part of this project is trying to figure out what message and tone I want to bring out when others are looking at the art. I mostly used black and white for this project because I want to keep it simple yet a lot of stuff is happening. I used a lot of straight lines, thin and thick. I used thin lines to add details while I used thick lines to bring out certain parts. I used shapes like circles to make it look like they are hairs. 

When I first started this project I did not have a particular story behind it. The longer I worked on it. I came up with some meaning behind this artwork. I think the message of this piece is that broken things are still beyond beautiful. Every one holds a special story in them that they may hide from the world. I like the “hair” the most because I think that brings the artwork together. The most difficult part was sketching the base of the face. I had plenty of time to do this project but one improvement would be to add more details. I learned that simple is bold.

Moo Ka Paw
Humboldt High School
Grade 11
Never Forget
Sharpie permanent fine markers, 9” x 12” 

My Karen identity and culture is very important to me. I wanted to make an artwork that strongly communicated who I am, where I come from, and to encourage other Karen people to be proud of where we are all from. I included a house that is a very common symbol of Myanmar, as well as the Karen flag. The figure has his hand raised as a symbol of power.

Sher Nay Htoo
Humboldt High School
Grade 12
Window Into My Memory 
Pencil, 9” x 12”

For this artwork, I was thinking how eyes often show who we are. I showed that my identity is partially who my people were when we came from in Myanmar, and also influenced by the city, St. Paul, where we live now. There's a tear because I am sometimes sad that my family had to leave where they were from.

Samari 
Humboldt High School
Grade 11
Dream Room
Elmer's Glue, foam toy blocks, cardboard, paper cutouts, scissors 
15” x 8” x 6”

I really wanted to build something for our architecture theme. My teacher showed me these blocks, so I started to design a building, but it really turned into a room. I am proud of the details I added and the idea to glue the blocks to the sides inside a box to make it more stable. It is my dream room because it has a big bed and a big TV.

Anders Mork 
Humboldt High School
Grade 11
Identity Profile 
Paper with permanent marker, 18 x 18

I intentionally was playing with identity as influenced by comic books and superhero themes. For the self-portrait itself I borrowed upon Pablo Picasso combining portraits from different points of view. Different points of view also connect to the perception of superheroes by other characters in the films and stories.

Anastasia
Johnson Senior High School
Grade 12
Ethereal Winter
Watercolor 
9” x 12”

This painting is inspired by the winter weather and how I enjoy walking in the snow.  Creating this painting allowed me to explore textures and discover how well I could control watercolor paint.  This painting is important because I intentionally tried to create a character that I have never seen in the fantasy genre.

Amaya
Johnson Senior High School
Grade 11
Napoleon
White charcoal pencil, graphite
15” x 11”

My artwork portrays the beauty of the skeletal structure. While creating this work, I discovered that it was difficult to get all the values and proportions correct. It was a struggle for me to continue, but I persevered. This artwork is important to me because it’s one of the first pieces I’ve completely finished.

Joyce Wu
Johnson Senior High School
Silly Joyce
Charcoal 
12 x 18”

In this project, I want to show that people need to just relax and smile!!! I was inspired by the people around me, people were tense and awkward to take their own pictures in front of people, but I’m not, I want people to just relax and enjoy the moment.

Eh ku
Johnson Senior High School
Grade 10 
Acceptance of Ethereal 
Digital drawing 
2872 x 3562 px 

My art piece is intended to tell the disconnection between reality and reverie with a view point of a golden child. While creating the artwork I was in doubt about how it felt impossible to differ the colors and show balance of beauty. After some rendering it was about right. I learned that large success comes after hardship and that it takes time. This artwork is very important to me because it exemplifies my longing for peace between a world of imagination and real life.

Anastasia
Johnson Senior High School
Grade 9
Untitled
Ceramic

Nomlauj 
Johnson Senior High School 
Grade 10 
Big Sight
Digital Photography 
1280 x 960 px 

My art tells me of a beautiful view up to the sky and the oversized plants from a worm’s eye view knowing that every cloud is not one drip of water coming down. Clouds, like the guardian and the barriers of the sun, the heat of the sun kept to itself. The prevention of nightmares from flowing through earth’s surface and rain falling down means the clouds had showered support onto us. The view of plants shows that the bigger things will always come in front first, bringing shelter of small insects like worms. I discovered that everything can have a meaning of support when I created this work. This artwork looks important to me because it shows many different perspectives from others and makes us think that life will be supported no matter what or if you see it or not.

Raquel
LEAP High School
Grade 11
Claro de Luna
Acrylic on canvas
“8 x 10”

I like to paint landscapes. In the night, I am calm and more creative. It is my time of inspiration. I thought about the colors first, and how to mix the colors to show how I see the light at night. I used acrylic paints on a canvas board. The art I created was inspired by Beethoven's Sonata Claro de Luna. I listened to the music while I painted.

Kouanai
LEAP High School
Grade 11
Loneliness
Graphite
12’ x 18”

This artwork is a self-portrait that tells the story of a simple man, but his life is full of confusion.
I used techniques learned from my teachers and I used pencil and paper. I drew the background because I wanted people to see the protection of life. I wanted to show the dark and light together in the background. 
The background in the self-portrait seemed to be filled with confusion and loneliness. I learned how to apply the techniques I learned in my own way.

I want everyone to know that the picture may look normal, but the truth behind it can be confusing and lonely. People may look okay, but they also are dealing with problems. For someone who is in the dark, the sun has light, and the moon has darkness.

Momina
LEAP High School
Grade 12
COVID
Tempera
14” x 14”

My art represents what we all see every day - the image of a virus, COVID. This painting is about a memory. I was at LEAP High School when we got the news that COVID started. I couldn’t go to school anymore. I had to stay at home to protect myself and my family. I had to wear a mask when I went out. I washed my hands with soap and water. I was nervous. I was scared that I might contract the virus. On the news, images of COVID were everywhere. People were dying from COVID. I was scared about what was happening. During 10 months of being at home because of COVID, I had to attend LEAP School with all my teachers through Google Meet. At school, the process of art is easier than learning from home. Having art materials and my teacher talking with me about my art is much better. For me to learn, I need to be in person. By using tempera color to paint, people can see the image of COVID. My painting radiates and keeps growing, circles represent virus clusters, and dots and dashes also show pattern spreading. I made COVID beautiful even though it is dangerous too.

Noah
Open World Learning Community
Grade 9
Self Portrait
Acrylic 
16” x 20”

This piece of art was created to encapsulate who I am as a person. I started with painting several landscapes as a background each containing its own meaning to me. While painting myself I tried not to worry about any flaws or insecurities about myself and stay true to my identity. I am very proud of this work and it holds deep value to me.

Maggie
Open World Learning Community
Grade 12
Dragon’s egg
Coiled ceramic pot 
8’’ x  5.5”

I felt very frustrated with this pot at first. I felt like I wasn’t getting it right, but during the process a classmate said it looked like a dragon’s egg. So, I looked at it in a new light and changed my plan for finishing it. I guess the story of this pot is one of an unexpected collaboration and learning to accept a change to your vision.

Phattharajarin
Open World Learning Community
Grade 11
Still Life Of Fruit Bowl 
Watercolor paper, watercolor, sharpie 
9” x 12”

This art is inspired from real fruit. I decided to paint this fruit because it's full of my favorite fruit. I added a zentangle behind the fruit to make it look more interesting and a checkerboard showing one point perspective at the bottom of the picture to make it look 3D.