Arts Event Puts Student Creativity on Display
ICOE Foundation Fundraiser Celebrates Achievements Among Valley Youths

EL CENTRO — A small, kind of lumpy, kind of scratchy, piece of student artwork was shown to the gathered audience at the Autumn & the Arts fundraiser. Imperial County Superintendent of School Dr. Todd Finnell held up the little clay bowl for all to see, smiling as Miriam Villareal-Marcuson told the story of the piece.

Daniel Ortiz is one of 120 ceramics students at Wilson Junior High School in El Centro, and his teacher, Villareal-Marcuson, was beyond proud to see what her students have accomplished with materials that are, in her words, just dirt and water.

As she watched Daniel create his piece, he was making lines with a fork to create a scratchy design. And he told her something that struck her, and she had to share it Thursday night, Oct. 6.

“He was really into it, working really hard making these lines, saying these are the scars of my life. He’s only 12, and he said these are the scars of my life and all together they create this beautiful texture,” Villareal-Marcuson told the crowd. “So all together these make a beautiful life.”

Daniel’s vase was just one of many pieces of student artwork showcased at the Autumn & the Arts event, which placed a spotlight on the arts and the impact they can have on the students of the Imperial Valley.

Hosted by the Imperial County Office of Education’s Foundation for Education, the night was meant to showcase what Valley students of the arts have accomplished, be it from artworks and ceramics, to culinary arts. After dinner, desserts created by the culinary students of Calexico High School were served to the gathered crowd.

Along the walls more than 20 art pieces created by local high school students were on display from Central Union High School, Brawley Union High School, Holtville High School, MayrArt Studio, and Southwest High School. All were pieces that had hours of effort poured into them for this moment in the spotlight.

Ivette Gonzales, a math and science teacher at De Anza Magnet School, came out in support of the art movement and was very pleased to see a former student’s art on display. The student in question, Jesus Beristain, moved her with his quote about being able to express himself through art about his trials and struggles. She of course had to buy his painting.

“I knew he had that knack for expressing himself through paint. To see his painting and see how much he has developed is really great to see,” Gonzales said. “What more can do as supporters of the community than to come and support our young?”

BUHS art teacher Raymond Lopez sees this as an opportunity for his students and felt a sense of gratification that the community is able to see their work.

“I’m happy for my students’ hard work, happy to see it going into someone else’s home to brighten their homes with incredible art,” Lopez said. “It just makes me; happy, it’s why I teach art. It just makes my job so much more.”

Fifty ceramic vases were donated to the event for sale, each hand thrown by a Wilson student in Villareal-Marcuson’s ceramics class like Daniel. The purchase of the vase also included a mystery basket filled with different items from local artisans.

ICOE’s Dr. Finnell also took the opportunity to announce that ICOE will be starting an academic arts event to help push and celebrate the arts in the Imperial Valley. Additionally, BHE Renewables gave ICOE $30,000 to help start the initiative. Presenter Bari Bean also added that maybe when the ICOE’s STEAM festival happens this year, BHE can send some of their own engineers to talk with the students that day.

“It is our goal that all students across all the Imperial Valley have the opportunity to have art in their classroom and be a part of these programs,” Bean said.

At the end of the night an auction of three items from local artists including a photograph from Letty Guerra of Monarch Iconography, a set of four mosaic sunflower pieces created by the students of Sunflower Elementary with help from the Rainforest Project, and a signed and numbered limited-edition print of a piece from well-known local artist Simón Silva.

Money raised from the auction and the vase sales will be going toward ICOE Foundation scholarships. The Silva piece alone went for $800. Most of the student artwork also sold and money from those sales will be put into a scholarship for the student whose work was bought.

As for Daniel’s vase, Finnell proudly said the piece was going on his desk and it was a reminder of what the event is all about.

“We see a simple vase bowl with some texture on it, but there is a story behind it and every piece,” he said. “The work we are going to do is going to have an impact on the kids, and it is very exciting.”

Thursday’s event is just one of two events that the ICOE Foundation had during the school year. The next one will be the ICOE Foundation for Education Golf tournament on Feb. 18 at the Del Rio Country Club in Brawley.

Article by Katherine Ramos
Calexico Chronicle/Holtville Tribune

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