Judging by the student work on display at Texarkana’s Regional Art Center now, some of the most interesting, innovative art around Texarkana is coming from area youth.

In fact, the judge of Texarkana Regional Arts and Humanities Council’s 16th Annual Student Juried Art Show, Doug Waterfield, said it was one of the highest quality exhibitions he’s juried and, because of that quality, proved difficult to judge.

“I was quite impressed with the level of craftmanship and the professionalism ofmany of the works,” wrote Waterfield in his juror’s statement. “This tells me that not only do the students have pride in what they have produced, but that they have been taught that pride by their instructors. It is both encouraging and exciting to know that we have such talented teachers in our region.”

TRAHC received 398 entries, the highest ever for the show, including 338 from local high schools and 60 from middle schools. Now on display are 33 works from middle school students and 85 works from the high schools.

Treva West, TRAHC’s community program coordinator, pointed out the many unique pieces crafted by young local artists, such as collage work, portraits, sculptures and both representational and more abstract pieces.

“We’ve got a good bit of variety in the middle school area,” said West while discussing an award-winning batik piece. “But mostly it was collage and/or marker or watercolor.”

Often, students who’ve entered into the shows have entered for several years, giving them a chance to follow their artistic talent’s progress from year to year.

“We’re pleased at the entries, the level and amount of entries, and the level of work for the high school and middle schools this year,” West said.

She said it’s the teachers who’ve helped make the difference, teachers who are also wonderful artists themselves.

“Also really focusing on presentation, the final product, what you’re bringing in,” said West. “(And) I’ve seen a lot of studies done from different artists and different periods.”

She said it’s easy to see the teachers are challenging the students to develop their techniques and see what artistic mediums they like.

“I think that is important when you’re dealing with art students trying to find themselves, what medium do you want to work in,” said West.

Walking through the galleries, she points out some of the strong pieces that didn’t win awards, an indicator of the outstanding work in this year’s exhibit.

“There are some times when you’re standing in the gallery and you’re wondering if you’re in the adult juried show ... it’s amazing,” said West.

The top award winner for high school entries was Ana Bourgeois’ “Bodhisattva,” and interesting multi-media piece that combines a Buddha-like body with Western icon John Wayne’s cutout faces.

It’s a fascinating, challenging piece of art that hints at a statement but is also just fun to see. Waterfield praised it for its craft, concept and originality.

“But hers also incorporated a sense of humor, which is a feature common to a good number of postmodern artists,” Waterfield wrote about it.

Below is a roundup of the winners. If you see them, offer congratulations for making the world artistically richer at a young age, or perhaps buy them some art supplies to nurture that talent along.



The 16th Annual Student Juried Art Show Winners:

High School

Best of Show: Ana Bourgeois, Texas High School

1st Place: Katie Vaughn, Pleasant Grove High School

2nd Place: Jimmy Ward, Arkansas High School

3rd Place: Jessica Haas, Pleasant Grove High School

Honorable Mention: Katie Primm of Pleasant Grove High School, Amy Schreve of Pleasant Grove High School, Tracy Poole of Pleasant Grove High School

Merit Award: Andrew Massey of Texas High School, Craig Williams of Texas High School, Michelle Holeman of Pleasant Grove High School

Middle School

Best of Show: Karlee McDonald, Liberty-Eylau Middle School

1st Place: Joe Habisreitinger, Queen City Middle School

2nd Place: Shannon Moore, Queen City Middle School

3rd Place: Parkes Whisenant, Hooks Middle School

Honorable Mention: Nikah Hatcher of Liberty-Eylau Middle School, Reshuan Gipson of Queen City Middle School, Alexa Murphy of Queen City Middle School

Merit Award: Cody Meyers of Queen City Middle School, Chelsea Yates of Hooks Middle School, Anthony Sciara of Hooks Middle School



(The 16th Annual Student Juried Art Show runs at the RAC through June 14 with winners on display through June 25. The Regional Arts Center is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday with a 7 p.m. closing time on Thursdays. Admission is free.)