This year, North Harford High School and its surrounding community was invited to witness the best artwork from art students during the annual art show.

     From Monday, May 9 to Friday, May 13, students in the art program were given the chance to show off their skills in the library and atrium during the show. Many different kinds of art were displayed throughout the spaces.

       Mr. Jason Blevins’ students, who take fine art prep and drawing and painting, had pieces ranging from charcoal drawings of squids to paintings of purple deer. Mrs. Lisa Campbell’s students, who focus on 3-D design, had works such as fairy houses and stained-glass boxes. Blevins commented, “I think it was really awesome for kids to finally, after almost two years of not having an art show, to see the work back up and be able to celebrate what the student body created artistically.”

      The show itself was set up by the North Harford Art Guild with help from various art classes. The groups put up accordion boards full of artwork to create a walk-through gallery while more art was displayed on shelves and tables. Junior Ren Kramer, who is the president of Art Guild, stated, “I think all [of] the artwork was beautiful, and each piece had its own unique message and interpretations. The senior tables really stood out to me the most with each student’s own artwork all compiled.”

      That being said, art pieces created by senior artists such as Silvia Martinez, Hannah Williams, Annika Peterson, and more had their own displays towards the back of the library. The individual tables gave each senior their chance at showing off their work from all four years of high school. Each table was put together and decorated by the seniors. Senior Silvia Martinez commented, “With the displays this year, I really liked how different all of them were from each other. By looking at a display, you could get a sense of who the artist is as an individual and feel their overall vibe through their work.”

      The event was also open to the public on Wednesday, May 11, at the same time as the chorus concert. Many showed up to the show, such as math teacher Mrs. Shelly Sparks. Sparks stated, “I loved it. I never get to see that side of students since I’m usually focused on mathematics, so I was very impressed with what I saw.”

     Similarly, English teacher Mr. David Orth said, “I really enjoyed the art show… Sometimes kids aren’t great at English, or don’t like it, so it’s nice to see some of those kids excel in another area.” Freshman Maddie Spangler added, “It was fun since I got to see other people’s creativity.”

     When asked if he had any words for the students whose work was in the show, Blevins stated, “I’m proud of you all. Some of it was challenging to make, and the folks that stuck it out with their work…it really paid off for them.”