Last Updated on July 31, 2024 1:45 pm
WATAUGA COUNTY — Watauga High School and Watauga County Schools are thrilled to celebrate rising Sophomore Jasmine Tripp. As a freshman during the 2023-2024 school year, one of Tripp’s art pieces was selected for a year-long exhibit in the north lobby of the Legislative Building in Raleigh.
Students selected to have their art displayed in the Annual North Carolina General Assembly Youth Art Exhibit should feel incredibly proud. Only two students from each region are selected to participate annually. WHS is in Region 7.
The exhibit's purpose is to share the exceptional creative ability of NC students with legislators and the public. On the afternoon of June 19, an opening reception was held for students, parents, teachers, principals, and other administrators to enjoy the exhibit alongside members of the General Assembly.
Tripp’s interest in art began at a young age because all of her siblings are also very artistic, whether it be music-related, physical art, or both. Two of her siblings were involved in Choir and earned achievements such as attending all-state. One of her sisters attended architecture school and is very talented.
“I think they all just rub off on me,” Tripp said. She shared that her mother, Kristi Pukansky, is also very artistic. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she purchased a lot of art supplies to start painting because she had extra time, which she had always wanted to do.
Regarding what she chooses for her subjects when creating art, Tripp enjoys landscapes and portraits.
“I think landscapes are the easiest to paint, but portraits are the easiest to draw,” Tripp said. She explained that colored pencils and graphite are easier to control than a paintbrush and paint.
“I think portraits are probably my favorite,” Tripp said. “They’re definitely hard to do, but doing those and still lifes increase your skill level pretty exponentially just because of how many things you have to learn in order to do those.”
WHS Visual Art teacher Genal West is one of two coordinators for Region 7 with the North Carolina Art Educators Association. When they have their state conference each year, each teacher brings one or two pieces with them to be voted on. All art educators who attend the conference look at the art in this mini-art show and then vote based on which ones they like the best or feel show the most skill. West shared that a former WHS student who had artwork selected a few years ago was a senior. It is a big deal for Tripp to have artwork selected as a freshman in Art 1.
NCAEA is the only entity that they have allowed to do any display in the Legislative Building.
“I submitted two pieces because the one that she chose, the one that won, I didn’t like very much,” Tripp said. West added that the one Tripp liked was more realistic, and the winning piece was more abstract. In the winning piece, a picture from Tokyo is made into a planet instead of having a panoramic view.
West took both of them, knowing that Tripp liked her other piece more. However, she also knew that there would be more realistic pieces to vote on and fewer abstract works.
One interesting fact about Tripp’s art, which is now on display in Raleigh, is that it was done on cardboard. This is because the canvas is expensive.
In addition to excelling in art classes during her freshman year, she was enrolled in AP Environmental Science and Math 2 Honors. Pukansky and West encourage students to take Arts classes during their high school years to keep their brain's right and left sides balanced.
“It fires up the different side of the brain,” West said about taking Arts classes.
Since the right side of the brain is the creative side and the left side is the logical side, classes such as visual arts, ceramics, and music allow students to utilize the right side of the brain.
Pukansky shared that Tripp would like to have a career in healthcare, such as a physician’s assistant and she feels that art is something that can be brought into this field of work. West added that Art Therapy is a field that is currently in high demand.
“I think that art allows you to notice things that you would never notice unless you were purposefully paying attention,” Tripp said. “Art gives you a second to calm your mind and just look around you and appreciate your surroundings.”
A close-up photo of Jasmine's art that is on display at the Legislative Building in Raleigh, NC.
Jasmine poses with another piece of hers entitled “Orange Juice” which was on display at Watauga Education Foundation's “Shooting Stars” exhibit in April.
A close-up photo of “Orange Juice”
