Hey, Rebs! It is that time of year again when students get to display their artistic skills in Quartz Hill’s annual Chalk Art Contest. This contest began last Tuesday, April 25 and it ran until Friday, April 28th, when all of the chalk art entries were judged by campus teachers Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Dhillon, and Mr. Dixon. The artwork was drawn in front of the office.

Student recognition chair Seerat Chawla, a junior at Quartz Hill, held the responsibility of coordinating the entries and ensuring the contest ran smoothly. For ASB, this is an event that the student recognition committee plans early in the year. In order to have participated in the competition, artists needed to send an application including an attached picture of the design to the ASB room. The application was due prior to the start of the contest for the design to be approved.

This event showed the creativity that our students at Quartz Hill possess. By featuring several colorful and detailed works, it offered an eye-catching attraction to students passing by the front office.

After the judging process, Emily Miller was deemed as the first place winner, second place went to Omid Taghizadeh, and a tie for third went to Erica Carter and Izabelle Rotol, who worked together, and Evan Michael Tumber.

Winners Erica Carter and Izabelle Rotol shared their experience as first-time contestants: “I thought it would be fun to show the design, and it is a nice distraction from all the AP tests. Our design was Sublime’s 40 Oz. To Freedom album cover, but we changed two elements. There is a lot of different interpretations of the cover and different elements within it. The meaning behind it was life, death, and magic.”

Students who participated in the competition encountered numerous challenges while creating their chalk art. One of the hardships included the strong winds, which made it difficult for the students to draw outside. Aside from weather conditions, students also struggled because they were not familiar with the unusual medium. When using chalk, the students had to use their fingers to rub the chalk on the rough concrete, resulting in sore fingertips and color-stained clothes.

Seerat Chawla’s reflection to this year’s Chalk-Art Contest: “I really enjoyed the growth in participation. Last year, there was only 16 and this year we had 32 contestants. And, of course, the artwork was amazing, and the amount of time and work put in was beyond what I expected. Some people even stayed after school for hours to finish.”

While there could be only three winners of the competition, each artist displayed immense talent and creativity in their drawings. Overall, the 2017 Chalk-Art Contest was a success, exhibiting many talented artists and the effort poured into each work.