The hallways and galleries at Orange Lutheran High School will soon be lined with student-created artwork as the annual Spring Visual Arts Show returns to campus with an open house event on Wednesday, May 13, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The exhibit will feature a wide range of pieces showcasing the hard work and creativity of nearly 400 Lancer students. From paintings and drawings to ceramics and digital art, the show will highlight works created throughout the school year, representing a range of artistic skill and personal expression.

“This is a way to celebrate our students and everything that they've worked towards this year,” said OLu art teacher Ariel Gjersvold '07. “It’s a way to see where they started, all the way to the end, and for them to show off their talents and their beautiful creations.”

Courses represented in the show include beginning classes Exploratory Art, Honors Exploratory Art, Ceramics & Sculpture 1, and Design & Photo; second- and third-year classes Advanced Ceramics and Honors Studio Art 1 and 2; and fourth-year AP Art & Design.

Student artwork will be displayed in the 500 Gallery and 600 hallway, as well as the 600 Gallery, which will be home to ceramics and sculpture pieces.

Additionally, the lobby of the Nechita Center will display the portfolio pieces of this year’s 10 senior AP Art & Design students, each of whom will present their portfolios on the Nechita stage from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Senior Lancer Olivia Khanbeigi is one of the AP Art & Design students preparing to present her portfolio. Centered on the theme of childhood imagination, her collection features a dozen pieces created in a variety of mediums, including acrylic, watercolor, colored pencil and graphite.

“I'm just excited to see all the pieces together as a collective body,” said Khanbeigi. “I've only seen them individually as I've made them over the span of almost a year now, so I'm excited to see them all together and to hear and see other people's interpretations of them.”

Khanbeigi has had a strong interest in art from a young age and when she arrived at OLu as a freshman, she knew she wanted to continue that pursuit. She started with Exploratory Art her freshman year and then took Honors Studio Art 1 and 2, as well as her current AP Art & Design class.

“That was one of the big draws for me to OLu, because I'm very focused on my academics, but also art is my outlet,” said Khanbeigi. “It's my way of expressing myself. This is my way of showing who I am.”

Khanbeigi works in a variety of mediums but finds herself drawn primarily to acrylic and watercolor. As a member of OLu’s STEM Academy, she values her time in the art studio as a way to both decompress and document her life.

“I use it to kind of make a capsule of my life,” said Khanbeigi. “It gives me time to think and let go of things that have happened. It's therapeutic for me.”

Students in each art class, regardless of the level, produce 10 projects each year, allowing them to develop their skills, explore different artistic styles and mediums, and grow in creative confidence throughout the course. The department places a high priority on providing students opportunities to display their work.

“We have a pretty rigorous program, and I think they learn so much,” said OLu art teacher Jane Klammer. “But as artists, it's important to see it. It really does help students step up to the next level, and all of that gives them more confidence.”

“Our philosophy as a department is that all the students in this school are creative,” added OLu art teacher and department chair Jeannie Mooney. “We want them to be proud of what they've done and to see their accomplishments. If we keep it in the classroom, no one sees their art.”

The art department also emphasizes teaching students the language of art and enhances their learning through annual guest speakers, including alumni, and field trips to local museums such as the Hilbert Museum of California Art, the Orange County Museum of Art, and the Laguna Art Museum.

“I think it's something that once you own it, it's your superpower, whether you work in art or not,” said Mooney of creativity. “We recognize a lot of our kids are not going to major in art from here. But hopefully they take some of the skills that they've learned in our classes to enrich their lives and gain a better understanding of an aspect of their personality that they might not have recognized before.”