June 1, 2022
Humble ISD hosted its 19th annual Fine Arts Festival at Kingwood Park High School on April 30.
The event featured the End of Year Art Exhibit with artwork created by students in all grades, selected by Humble ISD art teachers and reviewed by a panel of experienced art educators and administrators from around the Houston area.
“We look at how students went beyond the lesson, how they advanced it, and how they used their creativity beyond the basic application,” Ramona Michael, Autumn Creek Elementary Art Teacher, said. “Elementary art teachers only have 25 works of art that can be picked from each school.”
Ms. Michael has been in education for 14 years, all with Humble ISD. She believes the Fine Arts Festival is important for both teachers and students alike.
“It’s like the Super Bowl for art teachers,” Ms. Michael said. “We all get to come together in one place excited to see what our classes have done and we get to see our students.”
For students like Raine Rawls, a seventh grader at Atascocita Middle School, the Fine Arts Festival is about more than just the accomplishment of seeing her artwork on display.
Atascocita Middle School seventh grade student Raine Rawls is pictured with her artwork “Nostalgia” at the Humble ISD 2022 Fine Arts Festival.
“My work gave me a channel to connect to my hometown of Wynne, Arkansas,” Rawls said. Her artwork titled “Nostalgia” was featured in the art exhibit and shows the downtown area of Wynne drawn by Rawls as she remembers it growing up.
In addition to the art exhibit, 18 creation stations provided students with the opportunity to flex their creative imaginations by making their own crafts like butterflies and doughnuts.
Maplebrook Elementary kindergarten student Olivia Guillory colors her own butterfly at a creation station at the Humble ISD 2022 Fine Arts Festival.
Students from all 30 Humble ISD elementary campuses took part in the performances.
The Maplebrook Elementary Broadway Bears perform on stage at the 2022 Humble ISD Fine Arts Festival.
The Fine Arts Festival was created by Visual Art Coordinator Stacia Gower in 2002 and the first event was held at the Humble Civic Center.
“The festival evolved from our elementary visual art team’s desire to host a day that would provide our community with an opportunity to immerse themselves in the arts,” Ms. Gower said. “The festival gives students the opportunity to share their creative work and talents with a larger audience.”
Since 2002, the festival has grown to include community members who participate in the artisans market, those who perform, and those who serve as volunteers.
In the following years, the festival grew to an event that attracted over 14,000 attendees thanks to the support of teachers, students, families, the Humble ISD Education Foundation’s Dr. Al Moore Fine Arts Grant, and a partnership with Lone Star College-Kingwood.
According to Ms. Gower, planning for the Fine Arts Festival takes dedication on a cycle that lasts the entire school year.
“The elementary visual art team is the driving force behind this amazing district event,” Ms. Gower said. “They begin planning the next festival when school starts in August.”
Centennial Elementary first grade student Nathaniel Drakes shows his artwork to his mother Margarita at the Humble ISD 2022 Fine Arts Festival.