The annual Holiday Art Sale was held Friday, Dec. 12 in the library. The sale featured many talented students’ artwork and helped support the art program.

Senior Celeste Caruthers has participated in many art classes and has been active in the Art Club all four years of high school.

“They have the art sale–the Holiday Art Sale–every year. All students in art classes or members of the Art Club will make a piece of art for the art sale,” Caruthers said.

Students who are currently involved in art classes or are members of the Art Club are required to submit one piece of their artwork to the sale.

“[The Art Sale] has gotten a lot of funding for the art department,” Caruthers said. “We get funding from the school, but art supplies are really expensive, and this is one of the main ways we can get money to keep getting art supplies.”

Not only are art tools excessive in their costs, but the competitions are also very expensive. Sophomore Emma Hubbell has been involved in art classes for the past two years and has gone to competitions and experienced the importance of them.

“We do the art sale to raise money for, not just the Art Club, but for AYA, which is the Arkansas Young Artists Association, where we go to compete every year,” Hubbell said.

The Holiday Art Sale is vital for the school community as well, and it helps bring attention to the fine art departments.

“[The Art Sale] helps to build a sense of community because we do it the same night as the big choir show, “ Hubbell said. “People from the choir show will go to the art sale, and people who go to the art sale go to the choir show, so it just kind of helps intermingle everybody.”

Holding both events on the same night connects many students, parents, and anyone who wants to support the arts program. It is a great way to showcase the two programs and create an eventful night for the school community. The art classes offer a diverse curriculum of many types of art, allowing students to advance in their skill set and create a vision for their future.

“I have always been an art kid, and coming to Central and having this wide range of art classes has really helped me solidify my future and what I think I’m going to do in life,” Hubbell said. “It’s really like college with the amount of courses that you can take.”

The extensive program helps students who have loved art their whole lives, and those who have never picked up a paintbrush. The art sale benefits these students by providing them with adequate tools to cultivate their skills. Not only is the art program exceptional in the work that is created, but the classes create a network of students who feel comfortable with one another.

“Taking specialized art classes and AP art classes has improved my art so much, and it’s helped me find a good community I feel safe in. I’m really happy I came to Central so I could be in Central art,” said Caruthers.