By Sahara Lyon-Mundy
Every December, City Hall fills with teachers, students, family, friends, and loved ones to celebrate the opening reception and awards ceremony of the Winter Festival Youth Art Exhibition. Over 250 people visit the seat of City government throughout the evening to experience visual art, music, and get in the holiday spirit. This past Winter Fest reception took place on Friday, December 6th, 2024, as part of Tallahassee’s City-wide, weekend long Winter Festival celebration. The evening was a huge success full of friends, family, fun, and youth art excellence!
The evening kicked off with student musical performances, made possible in part by funding from the Division of Arts & Culture (DAC), Florida Department of State. This year, two choral groups, one from Buck Lake Elementary and one from DeSoto Trail Elementary, led the introduction to the reception. Buck Lake’s choral group, led by music teacher Barbara Hartsfield, started at 5pm and sang a selection of holiday-themed songs, including Elves, Work Out! by J.W. Pepper, that put everyone in a festive spirit. DeSoto Trail Elementary’s choral group, led by music teacher Randy Baez, followed up after Buck Lake and sang an equally festive selection of songs. Both teachers had holiday and end of semester recitals coming up in the future, so we were so excited to catch a sneak-peak of what the students had been practicing.
As the students from DeSoto Trail started to wrap up their performance, other students, teachers, friends, and family started arriving to view over 70 works of art on display. Over 35 art teachers from more than 30 different K-12 schools in Leon County submitted up to two works of art for the exhibition. Being selected to exhibit in Winter Fest is an honor on its own, due to the competitive selection process. Donald Sheppard, an art teacher at Montford Middle School, expressed his support of the exhibition, stating, “The Winter Festival Youth Art Exhibition is an art teachers’ dream opportunity to display the magnificent works of their students. The works of art adorning the interior arc of the City Hall corridor resonates an atmosphere of excellence.” Emma Boutwell, student at Florida State University Schools (FSUS), echoed this excellence, “I was very honored to be able to be a part of the show… I knew it was an honor to be in the show in the first place.”
While being selected to exhibit in Winter Fest is a feat in and of itself, the juried exhibition also offers a number of awards to compete for. This year’s Winter Fest juror, Leslie Anderson, is a retired art educator who taught in Leon County for over 29 years. She is also a practicing artist who exhibited with COCA in 2024. She was tasked with the near impossible job of selecting 14 unique works of art for awards. The Winter Fest awards include First, Second, and Third place for middle school and high school; three Honorable Mention Awards; an Amanda’s Choice Award, to honor the long-time COCA Assistant Director Amanda Karioth Thompson; a Mayor’s Choice Award; and new this year, three Outstanding Achievements in Elementary. These 14 awards were announced in real time during the award ceremony that closed out the evening. This year’s winners include Caleb Green from Astoria Park, Emmett Rothe from Ruediger, and Maria Alexander from Sealey for Outstanding Achievement in Elementary; and Zariah Tucker from Raa Middle, Donella Martone from Leon High, and Aria Falconer from SAIL High for Honorable Mentions. Natalee Wang from FSUS won Third Place for middle school with a pastel work, sculpture was represented by Brooks Bradner from Montford who won Second Place, and Emma Boutwell from FSUS won First with her mixed media piece. 2D drawing swept the high school Third, Second, and First place awards, with Ella Hyle from Leon, Laila Alexander from Chiles, and Olivia Scarlett from FSUS winning, respectively. Amanda Karioth Thompson picked Maggie Bragg from Maclay Upper School, representing photography, and the Mayor selected Will Scott’s ink drawing from North Florida Christian to win the Mayor’s Choice. These students all receive a ribbon and a COCA goodie bag with a Lofty Pursuits gift card, and some receive a placard to mark their achievement. Will Scott, reflecting on his Mayor’s Award, stated, “I really appreciated being a part of this art community and participating in the competition. I also enjoyed meeting other artists my age and seeing their works of art.” The Winter Festival Youth Art Exhibition provides an opportunity for students to have their work seen and to see other amazing works by youth artists in their community.
In addition to a celebration of youth art excellence, Winter Fest is also a celebration of arts education and the teachers who make the exhibition possible. When reflecting about the importance of arts education, Leigh Kidd, art teacher at Ruediger Elementary, stated, “I love how art can be tied in to almost anything. Along with learning how to use new materials and techniques and improving fine motor skill, I also teach science, history, social studies and more.” Winter Fest also helps students appreciate the importance of arts education. Boutwell from FSUS stated, “I think it is important to learn art in school because it helps boost your imagination and it also makes you think hard to come up with ideas which can benefit other classes besides art.”
While the Winter Festival opening reception celebrated student art during last year’s holiday season, you can still see the students’ works in City Hall this year through February 11th. And if you can’t make it in person, you can view the online gallery here. We can’t wait to see what exciting work Winter Fest 2025 brings!
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