Ramona High School senior Aaliyah Villanueva was among the art students who gathered to celebrate the opening of an exhibit at 2Create Gallery that puts the spotlight on student artwork throughout May.
Villanueva submitted a painted cardboard piece she titled “Jellyfish.” It was her fourth year of exhibiting at the Ramona gallery. Villanueva said her inspiration for the work was her love of jellyfish.
The 18-year-old said she has been learning various art techniques in her Advanced Placement Studio Art class and decided to combine them. She made a small version of the jellyfish for class and then decided to create a larger version to display at home.
“I want to be an artist, but I’ll also study for physical therapy,” Villanueva said at the opening of the exhibit. “I will go to college in the fall but I’m unsure of which one. I’ll just be an artist for fun.”
The opening reception was held May 2 as part of 2Create Gallery’s monthly First Friday Open Houses, when new shows are introduced. The nonprofit gallery works to promote San Diego-area artists and increase public exposure to high-quality art by providing a space for them to exhibit their work.
The Student Art Exhibits — for middle and high school students in the Ramona Unified School District — have been an annual May event for the past six out of 10 years the gallery has been open, said gallery owner Molly Begent. Teachers select the work being displayed, Begent said.
Ramona High senior Red Harrell, who is taking an Advanced Placement Art class, used green and gray markers and pens to create his exhibit titled, “The Escape.”
The left half of his artwork is shaded in gray to represent his idea of trying to escape from himself, and the right half of the artwork in green shows him trying to escape from the world with his hand on a door handle, he said.
“I was trying to explore what I was escaping from in my life, which is ultimately myself,” the 18-year-old said. “The artwork’s clock represents me running out of time. The American flag represents me trying to escape politics. There’s an Earth in there that represents me escaping the world.”
Harrell plans to major in animation/illustration at San Jose State University in the fall.
“I have always liked art from a young age and I want to continue the pursuit of art,” he said at the show’s opening. “I’m hoping to do something in the animation industry. I like cartoons, so I hope to work on those in the future.”
Harrell said he would love to work for Disney, make independent films or possibly produce TV shows.
Aro Clark, 17, a Ramona High senior, used a box cutter and glue to make her untitled cardboard art that resembles a landscape.
Although Clark said she is more inclined to pursue a culinary career than art, she likes having creative freedom in her Advanced Placement Art class to experiment with different media including acrylics, watercolors, different kinds of clay and colored pencils.
“Since this is my first piece of artwork that I created for my AP Art class, I’m glad it made it into the Student Art Exhibit,” said Clark, adding it was her first time showing at an exhibit. “There wasn’t an inspiration for it. It was just, ‘Here’s a box cutter, here’s some cardboard, make something.’”
Ramona High junior Jaelyn Dokken, 17, made a “Fear of Abandonment” teddy bear piece using paint and colored pencils. She said she wanted to express her fears, particularly her fear of abandonment, mainly due to personal relationships.
Dokken drew inspiration to pursue art from her family and decided to take art classes all four years of high school, including a second year of Advanced Placement Art next year
“I usually do paintings and work with colored pencils,” she said. “I enjoy depicting animals for fun and nature in general.”
Dokken said she hopes to study at an art college in Los Angeles in another year.
“I’m learning something new every day, and I’m experimenting with new media,” she said.
Two students in Ramona High Visual and Performing Arts teacher Liz Schaude’s Drawing for Animation class gave presentations during the exhibit opening about animated films. One described the comedy “Monsters, Inc.” created by Disney’s Pixar Animation Studios. The movie features a scare factory in the monster world that is disrupted by a human girl the monsters think is toxic. The other student reviewed the Pixar film, “Ratatouille,” about a rat who dreams of becoming a chef.
The student presenters said they learned lessons about overcoming fears and having the ability to pursue any dream, no matter how impossible the dream may seem.
At the end of the opening ceremony, students learned about opportunities to attend art classes and art lectures at 2Create Gallery, which is open noon to 5 p.m. weekends at 438 Main St.
Another opportunity is that the Ramona H.E.A.R.T. Mural Project is looking for student artists to create small murals that will be displayed in downtown Ramona. The project is open to all Ramona students through Nov. 30.
All artists who apply must demonstrate strong visual and conceptual skills; a desire to build community; demonstrate an ability to execute the project in a timely fashion; and be willing to incorporate on aspects of their design. A stipend of $200 to $400 will be allocated for each artist or team selected, and supplies will be provided to successfully complete the project.
More information about the student mural project is available online at RamonaMurals.com, and more information about 2Create Gallery’s classes and lectures are at 2CreateGallery.com.
