(Reprinted from the March Network, page 10, additional photos added)

BellaSyslo

From picturesque watercolors of California beaches and Japan to historical costumes, Marian’s submissions to the Nebraska Scholastic Art Competition took many forms. The 39 works submitted included paintings, drawings, designs and apparel. The six students who received recognition for their artworks include seniors Patrice Roubidoux, Janny Apiwattangsakul and Marian Mowat, junior Jojo Ranby and sophomores Anna Hern and Bailey Kollasch.  

Art teacher Mrs. Joan Sanders says that the group displayed an immense amount of talent this year. 

“Some of the works were selected by the students themselves, but others were teacher selected. It was difficult to select just what works are entered because there were so many excellent works to choose from,” Sanders said. 

The group put in hours of dedication and hard work. Sophomore Bailey Kollasch said painting her watercolor piece inspired by Japanese landscapes required careful planning. 

“When I create art, it’s a very time consuming process. I have to perfectly sketch my rough draft and figure out the colors and techniques I’m going to use beforehand. I simply don’t have the time to work on my art last-minute,” Kollasch said.

Senior Marin Mowat said her self portrait and 19th century cycling costume took months to finish. 

“I worked on my self portrait for well over 300 hours, in and out of school for four months. I also worked on my costume during the summer as an independent project and it took a few months of sporadically working on it to complete,” Mowat said. 

Mowat was the only Marian student to submit a work of fashion. “I’ve been making costumes since grade school. Ever since I learned how to sew, it has been my favorite art form. I usually find my inspiration for costumes online and that’s where I found the idea for the cycling costume. I just had to design my own,” Mowat said. 

Through all the precise planning and labor, it is clear the students love completely putting themselves into their work, as senior Janny Apiwattangsakul described both the process and her artwork as therapeutic. 

“Mrs. Sanders gave us a lot of time to enjoy the process and work in class so I wouldn’t have to hurry my painting. My work is of Half Moon Beach in California and I titled it ‘Breathe.’ My painting was inspired by lots of fresh air and nature. I wanted to feel like I was completely wrapped up in nature during that time,” Apiwattangsakul said.