By Nancy Azzam & Jen Olaco

The month of April brought a unique opportunity for our Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) students to showcase their talents at the Granada Hills Charter (GHC) Art Show from April 1 to 3.
The colorful paintings, vibrant designs, unique sculptures, and creative drawings filled the walls of Highlander Hall as students showcased their artwork at the Art Show.

From detailed ceramic pieces to captivating paintings, this year’s art show truly brought together GHC’s gifted and talented students.

Along with visual arts, there were also performances by our dance, choir, band, jazz, orchestra, and guitar classes.

The performance by the guitar class created a sense of excitement amongst the students as they played their favorites: “Mannish Boy Blues” by Muddy Waters, “Sunshine of Your Love” by Cream and “Chamber of Reflection” by Mac DeMarco.

“There’s a lot of talent and creativity at GHC and I think it’s really awesome to allow it to shine,” guitar teacher Daniel Alfaro said. “Most of the students, even some of the more advanced guitarists in class, have never really performed in front of anyone, so this is a great opportunity for all of the students to be able to have the experience of performing in front of their peers. I think the art show is a very important part of our year because it’s a time that we get to really celebrate all of the creative output of all our VAPA students.”

Drawing and IB Visual Arts teacher Stephanie Thomas was thrilled to see her students be proud of their art work which was displayed for the school to see. She knows the hard work these pieces require and was thrilled to showcase their work for the whole school to see.

“It was all worth it,” Thomas said. “We had so many people walk through there like other staff and even some administrators coming in and checking it out.”

Students who were part of the show were able to answer questions about their work and see the many people walking around and observing the hard work that they contributed to their pieces.

“Making the pieces for this class is really fun and interesting,” AP Art student Linnet Akopyan said. “My work is guided by a general inquiry question that we chose by subject matter. We also had to use new materials to help make the piece more related to the real world. Having the school be able to see my artwork was heartwarming as I could hear people talking about my work and how they enjoyed my pieces, which I know I won’t always be able to experience.”

For Linnet, her artwork does not just represent a single piece of art, but a reflection of her own personal growth. The art show is a reminder of how talented and inspired our students are. Being able to communicate their emotions and artistic ideas through the Art Show gives the opportunity for the rest of their peers to share the creative spirit.