Elsa B., a seventh-grade student at Solar Preparatory School for Girls, will have her artwork displayed in the governor’s business office at the Texas State Capitol.
“I consider myself a creative person. I believe that I have big ideas and interesting thoughts. When I write or am completing a project, I believe that I can create a unique concept devoid of reused ideas,” Elsa said. “I feel proud to have an ordinary class assignment reach this level. I am excited for the opportunities presented with this accomplishment.”
Elsa’s piece entitled “My Best Friend” was submitted as part of the Youth Art Month Spring Exhibition, an annual program coordinated by the Texas Art Education Association.
This year, more than 170 art pieces were submitted by students representing 109 school districts across the state. Of those, only 14 were selected for the Governor’s Gallery, a prestigious showcase curated by the Office of First Lady Cecilia Abbott. The artwork will be on display for one year.
“The prompt for the class assignment was to create a scratch art drawing of your pet or other animal you happen to have photos of. I thought my dog was amazing, adorable, and would be a perfect subject for the piece,” Elsa said. “My dog’s name is Marti Nelli Berg. We named him after one of my favorite soccer players, Gabriel Martinelli, who plays for Arsenal, an English soccer club.”
To create the piece, Elsa sketched her concept on a blank piece of paper before transferring an outline of Marti onto a piece of carbon paper.
“From here, I used the carbon paper to create the outline of the piece on the scratch paper. Then, it was simply a matter of analyzing the lighting and textures from the photo and translating them onto the scratch paper with the exacto knife-like utensil,” she said.
Elsa’s art instructor at Solar Prep, Melissa James, says she is honored to work with such a hard-working group of students.
“As they have grown in their art, they have become more and more proud of their work,” she said. “I am so grateful to see their talent pay off in such an amazing honor as being hung in the governor’s gallery.”
Elsa, her family, her teacher, and district representatives will be invited to a special end-of-year celebration in Austin to honor all selected student artists.
“Elsa was very polite and respectful in the early days when I was getting to know her. As she worked, her talent was coming out, and she was very coachable,” James said. “She listened and added shading or made something lighter if I suggested it. Her work began to stand out among her peers. She also has great leadership qualities.”
To view all artwork submissions, click here.
