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May 9, 2024A blue shiny ribbon hung from an ethereal looking colored pencil drawing and a gladdened Sophia Floyd plucked it from its resting place.
The eighth-grade winner of the first archdiocesan-wide Fine Arts Expo, Sophia posed for a photo and as she smiled in front of the pink and blue artwork exclaimed, “I really want to travel and see the northern lights!”
Emotions soared as soon as the doors of Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School swung open, welcoming student artists from Oklahoma City Catholic schools and the inaugural Fine Arts Expo for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City. Families flowed in for an afternoon to enjoy, present and witness the art made by students ranging from first grade to 12. A list of artistic acts was on the agenda: speeches and dances were featured, bands and choruses performed, all part of the day dedicated to art.
Ramon Garcia, the art teacher at Saint James Catholic School, was responsible for the assignment of the artwork. Sophia said Garcia was relaxed on the assignment’s parameters. Why?
“We were free to create,” Garcia said.
He was not the only teacher with a more open-ended approach. Maria Karpova, music teacher at Saint James, allowed the seventh grade class to think outside the box and create a music-related artwork. What resulted was a pipe organ and an international first place prize.
“Big dreams are possible,” said Lucas Shaw, a member of the winning team. “It was fun to paint together and come up with ideas.”
The twiddle of violin strings drifted from the Bishop McGuinness chapel. There sang choirs of young voices, where the Saint Eugene Catholic School choir sang “Bring me a Little Water, Sylvie.”
Outside those chapel doors, panels of carefully chosen art pieces bore ribbons of first, second and third place. Yet, it would take but a moment to notice, not a single piece of artwork bore a name. Senior Director of Catholic Education, Lara Schuler, said the art remained anonymous for the impartiality of the judges.
All the while acts were performed, and music carried through the air. Speeches were recited and dances were performed, and the audience even got to see a ukulele octet from Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic School.
“It flourishes humans when we celebrate the talents and gifts of others,” Schuler said. “We only have music professionals if we have music programs in our schools.”
She went on to explain that there is no price that can be put on an artistic talent, and that art is “a talent, a skill and a joy.”
“The arts lift our minds to God through beauty,” Schuler said.
Anne-Marie Hagen is a freelance writer for the Sooner Catholic.
Photos Chris Porter/Sooner Catholic.
