Visions of society
Student artists honored at annual RHS gala.
Art students at Rockmart High School chose the path they wanted to take for this year’s annual exhibition and impressed their instructor and community leaders alike with their interpretations on the theme of “Utopia vs. Dystopia.”
The over 150 pieces created have been on display at the Rockmart Cultural Arts Center Gallery since mid-March and the top artists received special recognition during a gala held Saturday.
Rockmart High School art teacher Kristain Branham said she was concerned the theme, brought up by a group of students, would be too tough for some to convey properly.
“It had to not only be beautiful art, but art that pushes you,” Branham said. “I was very quickly proven wrong.”
Summer Johnson was selected to receive the Artist Choice award for her mixed media piece titled “Lucid Dreams.” Rockmart Mayor Sherman Ross presented student Rebecca Barber with the Mayor’s Choice award, while Colton Keene received the Principal Choice award from RHS Principal Bo Adams.
Eliza Stone took first place in the People’s Choice voting, followed by Fernand Perez in second and Tori Salzberg in third.
The Rockmart Kiwanis Club once again sponsored cash prizes for its top three pieces of the exhibit, with first place going to Ah’Kieyah Burge for her painting “The War Never Changes.” Second place went to Aubree Kent
above: Rockmart High School junior Ella Robinson works on a painting as part of a live demonstration during the 2023 RHS art gala. left: Rockmart Mayor Sherman Ross (left) stands with Rockmart High School art student Rebecca Barber after she received the Mayor’s Choice award. for “Lady Dystopia,” while third was Cynthia Crowe’s “End of the World.”
Several students had their pieces for sale during the exhibit, with many taking them home following the gala.