UPrep hosted the Visual Art Showcase, where students displayed their work from the semester. The event was open to students from all grades and parents. It took place on Friday, Dec. 17.  

Chamber Orchestra and Advanced Jazz Ensemble, led by instrumental music teacher Thane Lewis, performed at the event, according to orchestra student Alex Krembs. The event included food as well as art.  

“I was tasked with plating the food and helping bring it out to the tables,” photography student Braedon Bibb said.  

The Visual Art Showcase also featured activities such as a treasure hunt. 

 “It was kinda odd, but it was neat,” Eliot Anderson, a ninth grade student who attended the event, said.  “You read through the description of the art, and then you go back to this one person, and you tell them the description you saw, and they have to make sure you actually went there, and then you get one of these free little ceramics,” Anderson said. 

Salas coordinated the theme of the event, tall tales. 

“We come up with a theme in the beginning of the semester that usually correlates with the school theme,” Salas said. “So we’re going with the storytelling theme right now, and the theme of the showcase is tall tales.” 

Art students were assigned projects related to the theme. 

“They made different artworks that told a story,” Salas said. 

Visual arts teacher Bretta Ringo had upper students create skeleton personas to represent an aspect of themselves. Salas tasked middle school students with creating a self-portrait that included symbolism, according to Salas. 

“What’s great about visual art is that it utilizes a visual language, so it’s not so didactic in its language. It attracts a lot of viewers who might see things from different perspectives,” Salas said. 

Anderson enjoyed the showcase. 

“There were some really cool paintings,” Anderson said.