Art students at Diablo Valley College have submitted their work to the school’s second online art gallery show of the year, which opened April 26 and will remain active until June 30.

The current exhibit features a wide range of mediums such as animation, ceramics, digital photography, drawing, illustration, painting, printmaking, sculpture and traditional photography. Any student in art or digital media could submit their art, and several students have been picked for the following awards: the President’s Award, the Faculty Award, and the Student Choice Award.

The announcement of the awards took place on May 7. 

DVC art director Arthur King, who has been helping put on the school’s art shows for 25 years, said that all art pieces had to be done with the supervision of a professor and that students were not judged in order to be featured.

As part of the President’s Award, three students were chosen for the opportunity to have their artwork purchased by the school: Higuchi Shota, Melissa Martin, and Thao Uyen Chau. King said the art was  chosen according to “what they think will be interesting and engaging for the campus.” 

For the Faculty Award, King said students were chosen on the premise of “how they used the materials and followed the technical properties of traditional art making.” The following winners of that award received a $50grand prize: Allison Ping, Helena Sorus, Allison Keefe, Rodicheva Nelly, Jessica Hewiston, Amaya Deshasier, and Ezekiel Myres.

For the Student Choice Award, students voted for their favorite art piece on dvcartgallery.com. The winner, Marwa Shahin, received a pack of art supplies.

Despite the pandemic, the number of students who were interested in entering their work in the gallery had not declined, added King prior to the event, he also said that in the past, the show had up to 400 students participating. “We generally have students that are always eager and excited to share their work,” he said, and “occasionally there are times we have so much work it has been mind boggling.” He described creating a show amid the pandemic as a “wonderful, amazing, and surprising process.”

There are pros and cons to having the art gallery featured online, said King. One benefit is that “people will always be able to come back and view the art,” versus an in person gallery where a show is only showcased for a limited period of time.

In addition, the art gallery can reach 10 times the people with an online presence. Overall, however, King said there is nothing like having an in-person exhibit because the online show doesn’t create as much of an experience. “It’s different to stand in front of a painting and see all of the brushstrokes,” he said.

Even digital mediums like animation don’t feel the same online as they do in person because of the big screen. “It’s like watching a classic movie on a cellphone.”

*Editor’s Note: Corrections have been made from the original article to represent more accurate information.