Orange County students honored at FOA Junior Art Awards
By MARRIE STONE
Photos by Jeff Rovner
Never underestimate the impact adult recognition makes in a child’s life. For longtime Festival of Arts (FOA) exhibitor Kirsten Whalen, that moment arrived in kindergarten when her artwork received an honorable mention and appeared in the local newspaper. “I’ll never forget it,” she said. “When anybody tells you you’ve done something unique and interesting and valuable, it sticks in your head. You take it forward. It’s so meaningful.”
Whalen’s experience came full circle this year when she served as one of the final judges of the FOA’s 77th Annual Junior Art Awards. “We have to honor students’ creative work,” she said. “It’s so exciting for the kids and inspiring [for the rest of us].”
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Kirsten Whalen (far right), of the FOA Foundation, presented the awards alongside fellow judge Nancy Darnall and sponsor Mark Porterfield. Kindergartner Matilda Martinez won the Director’s Award and the Kindergarten Postcard Award for “Cute Fury Yeti.”
The FOA Junior Art Exhibition is the culmination of a process that begins when the Orange County Department of Education solicits art submissions from all Orange County schools for the annual OCArts4All program. This year, the county received 1,500 submissions from 99 schools. A team of FOA jurors selected more than 300 of these submissions to showcase at the Junior Art Exhibit throughout the summer. Last Sunday, the Festival held their annual awards ceremony, honoring students at every grade level and across several mediums, ultimately awarding 69 medals to young artists.
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The 2024 Junior Art Exhibit Award winners, jurors, presenters, supporters and educators gathered to celebrate on Sunday, Aug. 11
But the picture of arts education isn’t entirely rosy, highlighting the need for programs like this. Whalen pointed to falling submission rates, which have been dropping over the past decade. Even prior to the pandemic, she witnessed a decline. “We used to have four rooms of tables piled high with artwork. It was down to two before COVID, and it’s shrunk dramatically since. That’s really disturbing to me,” she said.
Submissions dipped to an all-time low in 2021 (down to only 500). The program regained some momentum in 2022 and held steady from last year, but Whalen hopes for significant improvement. Some educators point to an increased emphasis on STEM programming, and a hyper-focus on test scores. Whalen notes the overwhelming workloads burdening teachers and some districts’ deemphasis on the arts. Laguna, she said, is extremely fortunate in its rich arts education program. Not all Orange County schools can compete.
Whatever the cause, all this adds up to the increasing importance and relevance of programming like the FOA’s Junior Art Exhibition and the Junior Art Awards.
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Family, friends and teachers gathered at the FOA grounds last Sunday to celebrate their students’ accomplishments
Wendy Wu, an arts teacher in the La Habra City School District, was honored this year for her outstanding contributions to elementary arts education. After California voters passed Proposition 28 in 2022, and money was directed to local schools to fund arts education, Wu was finally offered a full-time position with benefits. Today she’s the only arts teacher for that district, teaching eight classes per day, grades TK (transitional kindergarten) through 6th, across six different Title 1 schools.
“The district didn’t have a budget for elementary arts education,” Wu said, noting she’s been teaching part-time for years. “Students didn’t have exposure to art, especially the visual arts. Once I started, they were so excited. Many of them had no experience using a brush, paint or other basic supplies. They were just grateful I was there, and happy to be in an environment that was so open. Everything was new to them.”
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Arts Educator Wendy Wu appearing with award-winning work by 2nd grader Harvey Mayhall
Wu wheels her art cart from classroom to classroom, estimating she teaches between 1,800 and 2,400 students across the various grade levels and half-dozen schools. In some classrooms, she has less than 20 minutes to teach a lesson. Nonetheless, 17 of Wu’s students were chosen for this year’s show and 6th grader Alan Huizar was selected to have his work showcased at the Samueli Theater at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts this spring.
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Whalen credits teachers like Wu who take time during their well-deserved summer vacations to honor their students. Lower submission rates and turnout “aren’t necessarily reflective of the art programs, but of the overworked nature of teachers in general,” Whalen said.
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(L-R) Scott Fitzpatrick (arts coordinator at OC Department of Education), Christine Georgantas, Nancy Darnall, Wendy Wu, Mark Porterfield, Kirsten Whalen and Sharbie Higuchi
Students like 7th grader Gael Gershwin-Razo, a student at Congregation B’nai Tzedek, benefit from a more focused and in-depth arts education. Gershwin-Razo’s teacher, Sharon Goldhamer, centers her curriculum around Jewish artists from the late 1800s to present day, and delivers in-depth lessons based on the works of those masters. They’ve covered Marc Chagall, Jim Dine, Alex Katz, Miriam Schapiro, Judy Chicago, Roy Lichtenstein and others. “We do a project either in their style or using their materials or otherwise inspired by them,” Goldhamer said.
Gershwin-Razo produced a Lichtenstein-inspired collage of In-N-Out entitled Burger Bonanza, which took third place in his category.
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Arts educator Sharon Goldhamer celebrates her 7th grade student, Gael Gershwin-Razo
While not every student intends to make art their career, there are some budding professionals who stand out in the show. Jacky Ramirez, whose painting Sailor Joy Trujillo won the 12th grade Junior Art Postcard award chosen by the FOA Marketing Department, will be attending Laguna College of Art + Design (LCAD) this fall on a full-ride scholarship. She plans to study drawing and painting with an illustration emphasis.
A lifelong artist, Ramirez entered Pacifica High School in Garden Grove during the pandemic. She credits her teacher, Sheila Colcord, for supporting and encouraging her arts education. “She has a special place in my heart,” Ramirez said. “I had her all four years of high school, starting online on Zoom my freshman year. She helped me prep all my work.”
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Jacky Ramirez, who won this year’s 12th grade postcard award, will enter LCAD this fall studying painting and illustration
It is often the youngest artists – with their adorable artworks and unmasked enthusiasm – who steal the show. This year was no exception. Kindergartner Matilda Martinez, who won the Director’s Award and the Kindergarten Postcard Award for Cute Fury Yeti, captured the judges’ attention.
Likewise, this year’s first place film/animation winner, Sleeping Beauty, was created by a class of first graders who each took on tasks to create a shadow-puppet show version of the classic fairy tale. “I met the young Foley artist, who explained to me that they each learnt about different parts of the filming process,” said FOA Exhibits Assistant Emma Zent. “It’s an exciting development in our Film/Animation category with younger students participating and experimenting with new art forms.”
The FOA Junior Arts Exhibit is fortunate to have the support of three generous sponsors: California First Leasing Corporation, Mark Porterfield of Laguna Beach and the FOA Foundation. “Their partnership is invaluable, and we are deeply grateful,” said Board President David Perry.
Perry also recognized the FOA’s partners at the Orange County Department of Education, especially Scott Fitzpatrick, Carey Arias, Marleena Barber and Trish Walsh.
Zent noted the FOA’s partnership with LCAD. “As part of our goal to help support OCArts4All, we were able to bring together schools that would normally only apply to LCAD’s Color It Orange show, allowing more local high school students the opportunity to exhibit in both showcases.”
It may be a cliché to say that it takes a village to launch the next generation of artists. But there’s truth to the adage. Several current FOA exhibitors, in addition to Whalen, got their start just this way. Perhaps now more than ever, today’s arts educators play an instrumental role in shaping their students’ futures. Their pride on Sunday didn’t go unnoticed. And their encouragement might just carry these kids the distance.
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Kindergartner Matilda Martinez’s family came out to celebrate her accomplishments
The FOA Junior Art Exhibition will be on display on the Festival grounds through Friday, Aug. 30. For more information, visit their website here.
