Arcadia High School (AHS) is home to an abundance of classes in all subjects, and visual arts is no different. AHS teachers Ms. Christine Ma, Ms. Jennie Doezie, Ms. Lolbette Moreno, Ms. Carol Bradley, and Ms. Annette Fierro opened their classrooms to students interested in the visual arts. From Mar. 4 to Mar. 8 during lunch, students were given the opportunity to participate in fun arts activities and ask the teachers any questions about the visual arts classes.
Ms. Ma held the first Art Week exhibit in classroom F-101, highlighting the class Classic Film. Setting up the room by herself, Ms. Ma provided students with the options of painting graffiti art on large strips of canvas or sitting down for some classic film trailers.
“Classic Film is about appreciating films that are relevant, reflective, and rewatchable,” explained Ms. Ma. “We watch and analyze films and also create our own short films.”
Students interested in the course flocked to the room, with some watching the films displayed on the projector screen and others painting graffiti art on the sidelines of the classroom. The first day of Art Week was definitely a success, with many students coming in to see what all the activities were about.
Junior Clyde Thorn, a current student in Classic Film, said, “I would recommend this class to anyone who is a movie lover and interested in film. I had a very fun and exciting experience learning new things and meeting new people.”
The second day of Art Week was dedicated to Screen Printing and Design.
“Screen printing is a different medium of art,” said Miss Doezie. “In this class, [students] do hand-drawn artworks, work digitally, or with clip art and make T-shirts, posters, stickers, fabric, [and] wood, [which makes] it really fun.”
Held in classroom G-101, Ms. Doezie welcomed students to try out the screen printing press and make their own “Obey” designs in hot pink. Along with this fun activity, students got to ask questions about the class. Ms. Doezie also teaches the Design class, and she made sure to let the visiting students know about this lesser-known arts class.
“Design is like an introduction to design and commercial art,” explained Ms. Doezie. “The [students] do animation, jewelry design, interior design, fashion design, video games, everything within the realm of design.”
Ms. Moreno hosted the next Art Week class, showcasing her Ceramics class in room G-102. Students had lots of fun working with clay and making their own pottery, and many were eager to learn about the class.
“I wanted to decide what Visual Performing Arts (VPA) class I wanted to take for senior year,” said junior John Andrianopoulos. “I found out about Art Week from the posters around the school, as well as by checking the student bulletin.”
Art Week drew the curiosity of many students looking to learn more about the VPA courses offered at AHS. Along with Andrianopoulos, junior William Cheu also visited Ms. Moreno’s class to see which VPA would pique his interest.
“I wanted to see if [Ceramics] would help me develop my creativity,” said Cheu. “Some of my friends told me about Art Week, and I wanted to see if [this class] would interest me.”
The fourth day of Art Week featured the Art Honors and Advanced Drawing & Painting classes. Ms. Bradley, the teacher for both these courses, defined her classes as the “self-expression resulting from the imagination and from looking at familiar surroundings.”
Students who dropped in got the opportunity to look at the projects of current students in the art classes, such as the aluminum sheets that the Art 1 class is using to make original masks.
Finally, Ms. Fierro set up her classroom in A-215 to allow students to explore the Photography class. With her display case of vintage and well-loved cameras at the front of the classroom, Ms. Fierro demonstrated her enthusiasm for students to come and join the class.
“In [Photography], students learn how to use DSLR cameras, compositional rules, industry relevance, and editing techniques,” said Ms. Fierro. “I would really recommend this class to any grade, and I really love that [the class] is mixed with students of all grades and levels.”
In addition to answering any questions about the class, Ms. Fierro also provided brochures for students that included information about the curriculum that students learn each semester for the course.
“All the curriculum is [aimed] to motivate and inspire students to learn from each other,” added Ms. Fierro. “You can’t just find the answers to these assignments online; the goal is to get kids to produce things that cannot be duplicated.”
Whether you’re interested in editing and software, or hands-on work with paint and clay, AHS has a visual arts class for you. Art Week truly helped shed some light on the activities and work that these classes have to offer.
