East Holmes festival highlights student fine arts

The halls and rooms at Hiland High School were filled with art from every school and every classroom in the district during the East Holmes Fine Arts Festival Monday, May 11.

The event featured music and art. Staff members from the art department picked out the best and brightest from throughout the district to showcase, and the music departments helped fill the air with beautiful music.

“This is the culmination of every event in the fine arts department that we’ve done for the band, choir, the arts programs, the woods departments,” said Zachary Rearick, director of instrumental music at Hiland. “For the band, this is our last big performance of the year aside from graduation, just as it is for jazz band, concert band and theater. This is our one big event where we want to celebrate with the entire community.”

A celebration is exactly what the evening was designed to be, as a sea of people from throughout the community paid a visit to the school to see and hear the talents on display.

Rearick said it also is a time when students and friends can collaborate one final time to enjoy something they share in common.

“If you think about our specific ensembles, that group of kids at that time for that purpose will never exist again,” Rearick said. “These are young people who have many shared experiences together doing what they love doing, so this is one final chance for them to share what they’ve been doing together.”

Chris Franks, Hiland visual arts and video production teacher, said this event is about celebrating everyone’s accomplishments and growth and not just the most accomplished artists.

He said some students may feel like their art is inadequate or not as good as someone else’s might be, but art is about expressing oneself and using talents to the best of one’s ability.

“I think everyone tends to struggle a bit with their own art,” Franks said. “We’re always our own toughest critics. But I think for most kids it’s nice to receive that letter notifying them that their work has been selected as part of the show.”

He said it is encouraging for students in the fine arts to be able to show what they can do in a public setting, and he said East Holmes Schools has some talented artists.

He said the most important thing is that art allows students to express themselves and show their creativity, and this night allows others to see the fruits of their labor.

“Being around these kids and seeing their creativity is inspiring,” Franks said. “They probably don’t realize that they inspire me through their effort and work. I get to enjoy what they are making every day.”

He said art also shows the personality of each student and lets tiny pieces of their own lives shine.

Marlea Leinbach, Hiland High School art teacher, agreed, saying the evening creates a relaxed atmosphere for all the East Holmes students and families from kindergarten through high school.

She said while teachers will often choose which art to display for the show, she allows her upper-level art students to pick their favorite and most personal work to showcase.

She also said the art teachers in the district collaborate throughout the year with a game plan on what they hope to achieve in their various projects, collecting qualifying art pieces throughout the school year to display.

“By the end we have a pretty strong collection of art from the kids because we’ve been keeping an eye out for what might be good for the show,” Leinbach said. “It’s kind of fun to collaborate throughout the year.”

Leinbach said it is encouraging to experience the type of turnout that flocks to the show each year, with community members expressing appreciation for students’ work that often may get overlooked.

“The neat thing about art is that it is very personal, but at the same time, others can also enjoy it,” Leinbach said.

On this night there was plenty to enjoy, and the school was alive with appreciation for what the students had accomplished.