Art by Surrey Secondary Students: Connected

Talented young artists throughout the Surrey School district showcase new paintings, drawings, photographs, sculptures, digital media, and more that examine contemporary experience and ideas while demonstrating exceptional visual literacy and technical skill. This year’s edition is also the first to include ceramics, with excellent examples of tea sets, planters, and sculptures. 

Through the encouragement of their teachers, art students develop their skills in mark-making, composition, and form while studying past historical movements and artists for guidance and inspiration in the exploration of their own ideas. The exhibition includes statements from both students and teachers, allowing visitors to understand the relationship between the educational curriculum and the development of young people's critical thinking and visualization skills.

The work on display also demonstrates a maturity and a keen awareness of many of the challenges facing our world, including the ongoing protests in Iran, violence against women, impossible beauty standards, and climate change. Many of the artists express personal struggles with anxiety, depression, memory, and identity. However, there is also a theme of optimism that permeates the exhibition, with artworks reflecting the possibilities of hope, self-healing, and the joy that family and community connections can bring.

Origin of Exhibition: Surrey School District