This year, eighty FMHS art students entered their artwork to compete against a multitude of students from different schools. The regional VASE competition was held at Timberview High School in Mansfield ISD. Experienced, older students try giving their best advice and constructive criticism for the students entering for the first time.

“I’ve just never done it before and I heard it was really cool and that it was a good learning experience,” freshman Skye Matlock said. “I haven’t heard about it until this year.”

Skye was encouraged and supported by others trying to help her make the best out of her experience.

“I have a lot of friends that are in senior that have done it many times and I asked my art teacher about it and they just made me worry less about it and said the right things,” Skye said.

There were a number of steps of preparation before Skye could enter her artwork.

“I’m entering a painting; it took like 2 weeks. It started out as just a class assignment and then I heard about VASE and how we could enter anything. But the first one, that was the class assignment, I did I couldn’t enter because it was traced on there so I had to make it bigger and grid it so I drew it all by hand so it was really complicated but it turned out nice.”

Confident about her artwork, there is still a bit of anxiety that comes along with entering.

“I’m nervous cause I heard there were judges and I’m not good at explaining things most of the time especially to older people,” Skye said, “I think my artwork is ok; I don’t think it’s absolutely amazing. I don’t have my mind set on going to state because i don’t want it to happen and then it not happen, but if it happens it happens.”

Flower Mound students compete against numerous other districts, which adds to the pressure of their artwork qualifying.

“There are eighty people from this school that are going, and I know there’s probably a hundred other kids from different schools or more,” said Skye.

Every student has their own purpose, motivation, and meaning towards art.

“I’ve always been doing art since second grade and i love it. And its a good way to get out emotion sometimes,” Skye said,”I want to go to art college/school if I can.

Six-thirty in the morning bus rides are a part from the exciting experience. Senior Sofie Rain Nieminen has gone through the process for her past four years throughout high school.

“We get on a bus to drive to some school we’ve never heard of. There are a few different judges and we get about 10 minutes per piece to talk to our judge. After you go home the judges go through the hallway and pick the ones that are going to state, and you get told whether or not you go to state,” Sofie said.

Sofie entered two different types of artwork this year.

“I’m entering one colored pencil piece and one watercolor/pen drawing,” Sofie said, ”My better one that I’m entering, the colored pencil one, it’s taken me about twenty or thirty hours total working on it.

As well as the long hours spent on their art, it can also have a deeper meaning and value to the artist.

“It’s the famous kiss at times square where the sailor is bending over the nurse,but they’re cats. It was a Christmas present for my boyfriend because he likes cats and I call him captain like a sailor,” Sofie said.

VASE can create memories that students share within competition day.

“Last year I went to state and you just meet a bunch of people and its just really fun and we had races down the hallway pretending to be sloths so that was fun,” Sofie said.

As well as being competitive VASE is also a chance for students and teachers to get to know people from other schools with the same interests as them. It’s a place where everyone can be comfortable and just hangout with other contestants.

“I’ve never found ideas in other peoples art from vase but it’s cool to see all the others school stuff. most of it is just assignments so you see a lot of versions of the same piece.”When you’re surrounded by other people that share your passion for art you don’t really get nervous because you know you’re all in the same mindset, but obviously I’ve been excited,” Sofie said.

Older  art students also find this an opportunity to help out the more inexperienced students.

“I’m kind of harsh when it comes to giving critiques because I know that i would  prefer to not have it all buttered up and just get the critiques. I want them to get better so i try to help,” Sofie said.

Upperclassmen gain more criticism to try to improve in any way they can.

“I really like to get critiques and so it’s helpful to get feedback on my art and then of course going to state is really fun,” Sofie said.

VASE is just a way to express your artwork and participate in something that might help you on later in life.

“Even if you don’t want to go to state it adds on to your portfolio and helps you get experience if you want a career in art or not it adds to your resume that employers look at,” Sofie said.

Overall, ten FMHS students qualified to State VASE, which will be held at Bryan High School in Bryan, Texas.