02-03-2025
The ‘Best of Bay' student art exhibit opens
BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB) – For the next three weeks, the spotlight is on local young artists in downtown Panama City. The Best of Bay Art Show opened at the Center for the Arts on Saturday.
For decades, Bay District Schools teachers have been hand-selecting student artwork to put on display.
'The pieces are selected based on representing that variety and showing the best of what we think our students can show so that they can take a look at it in comparison to all the other schools and hopefully be inspired,' Art Educator at Northside Elementary & Bay County Art Educators Association Secretary Kathleen Mcnulty Mann said.
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Bay County elementary, middle, and high school art is showcased in the exhibit. It features a variety of art, including photography, sculptures, paintings, and more.
It means a lot to students to share their work with the community.
'It was my art project in my school, and we needed to cut out these shapes and make them a pattern. We could choose patterns or make our own patterns. So, I chose some of them but made this one by myself,' student Zhasmin Arutiunian said.
'It's really exciting,' student Tahlia Ellington said.
'It's like amazing,' student SueAnna Robinson said.
'This is such an exciting opportunity for the kids because their artwork is being displayed the way that professional artwork is displayed. And we want our students to feel and see themselves as just the same as a professional artist. There are all kinds of the same value to you, not only to our community. And to their school, but we hope to themselves,' Mcnulty Mann said.
And teachers say the exhibit is just as exciting for them.
'As art teachers, we absolutely love it. Any chance for our students' work to be showcased I think sometimes visual art is easy to forget about because it's not maybe in your face as performing arts or dance performance might be, but quietly we are actually working with hundreds of students at every school,' Mcnulty Mann said.
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The exposition is free, and educators encourage the community to explore the display.
'It's such a positive representation of what it means to be a child in Bay County. And we're looking at it through their eyes,' McNulty Mann said.
The art will be on display at the Center for the Arts until March 22nd.
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