ORANGE PARK – Several Clay County students showed their work to hundreds of Orange Park Mall visitors over the weekend in the annual student art show.

The show took up two wings of the mall, with one wing dedicated to the work of Clay County’s elementary art students, and the other wing consisting of the work of “senior” level artists from high schools and junior highs throughout the county.

The elementary exhibit is purely for the enjoyment of the viewers, the parents, and perhaps most of all the young artists who get to see their work hanging on the wall.

“The best part is seeing the kids take photos with their art,” said Joy Keith, Fleming Island Elementary School K-6 art teacher while putting the finishing touches on her students’ space. “It’s also great meeting all the other art teachers because we never get a chance to see each other. Next year every elementary school is hiring an art teacher, so I’m excited for next year.”

Keith thinks that the participation will be higher than ever with more schools providing students with a teacher to promote the event and get the younger kids interested in creating and displaying their work. Sparking their interest at a young age could get some of the young artists into the senior level of competition once they head to middle school.

Keith has several hundred students and chose 40 pieces to be displayed in the show, which she said really builds the self confidence in those chosen to continue to create art.

Across the mall, the senior exhibition is a little different. The students in this portion of the show have been working on projects for the entirety of the school year in preparation for this culminating event. Some, though, are more serious than others.

There are two categories for two different types of artists, one category is judged and the other is just for the fun of showing work.

“Some of the students here are high-functioning artists, and some just want to show their work and we’re including both,” said Paul Suter, a ceramics and sculpture teacher at Fleming Island High School. “That’s what I think is fun about this event is that everybody gets to participate.”

Not everyone showing work in the exhibit will grow up to be an artist or art teacher, but being pushed by their teachers to follow their creativity and show their work should they be selected is a fulfilling experience for even the art hobbyists.

“I wouldn’t do [art] as a career, but I really like the creativity,” said Kelly Ventura, 14, a student at Oakleaf Junior High School. “I like showing my work. We work really hard all year, staying after school as late as 9 p.m. to work on our projects, so it’s really nice to get recognition. Most of my work is kinda gloomy, but a good kind of gloomy.”

Ventura, who was hanging her paintings and charcoal drawings next to the work of her friends from class, showed work for the second year in a row.

This year marked the first time that the show was arranged by school, and by teacher within the schools allowing viewers to note the differences in the schools’ art programs. Everything was included: photography, sculpture, ceramics, painting, drawing, and a variety of mixed media work.

“It’s neat to see aspects of each school’s environment in their artwork and the focus of students from different schools,” Suter said. “A show like this brings it all together.”