Wilson High School is hosting its third annual ArtsFest this Friday, May 20 from 4 p.m. to 10 at night. “ArtsFest brings awareness to the arts and gives everyone a chance to participate, including students who aren’t taking art classes,” said Mary Lambert, head of the Wilson art department.
Serena Wiltshire, a Wilson parent, has been the lead parent organizer of the Wilson ArtsFest since its first run three years ago. “[ArtsFest] exposes students who do not typically pay attention to the arts to the different creative opportunities that Wilson provides, as well as to the talents of their peers,” Wiltshire said “We are hoping that the ArtsFest becomes an annual event that all students will look forward to, much like Spirit Week.”
The event will feature artists from across the Wilson community, including the Wilson band, performance artists, and students selling their own work. “It really shows kids the business side of art, it’s not just making pretty things, a large part is selling it,” said Lambert. Many of her students will be selling art on Friday. Most will sell paintings, drawings, and prints, but some are also selling ceramics and jewelry.
One student who will be selling artwork is freshman Lily Forte-Fast. She will be selling pencil drawings, paintings, mixed media drawings, and t-shirts with her artwork on them. “I’m trying to get a positive response to my drawings. It would be amazing if people actually liked my work and were interested in buying it,” Forte-Fast said. She attended ArtsFest last year and was inspired to sell her work by all the other artists there. “Seeing the talent of the students really amazed me so I hoped I could do the same.”
This year, weather permitting, most of the performance arts will take place in the courtyard in front of Wilson. There will also be numerous food trucks and vendors.
In addition to the ArtsFest on Friday, throughout this whole week seniors will be creating a ‘legacy mural’ that will hang at the top of the atrium’s main staircase. According to Lambert, this is the first year seniors have made a legacy mural, but she hopes to carry on the tradition into future years. Students can watch the progression of the mural in the atrium during the lead-up to ArtsFest.
If you are interested in displaying art at the event, you can email wilsonartsfest@gmail.org. There is no admission fee for festival, and everyone is welcome to stop by and enjoy the artwork. •
ART BY LALITA KOHLS