Hidden in their small wing of the school, Perry’s art department is becoming a state and district favorite in all art fields.

Recently at a district wide art showcase, held at the Chandler Center for the Arts on Wednesday, April 23, multiple Puma students left victorious against fellow district competitors.

Five of the school’s best painters, sculptors, and photographers placed in first, second, and third place, beating out Chandler, Hamilton, Basha, and Arizona College Preparatory Academy.

For the second year in a row, PHS made a clean sweep in the painting competition, with sophomore Audrey West placing first with her painting of a young girl from behind, and junior Joelle Cayer who placed second for her winter wonderland creation, which she made out of recycled paper towels and then painted over.

Junior Kelsey O’Brien also placed, taking third for her painting of a caterpillar mirroring the sign language hand sign for caterpillar.

Sophomore Juliana Row, another winner comments “I was really surprised, actually, because that was my first competition.” She took first in drawing for her black and white sketch of a wolf. “It was like my favorite piece that won too, so that was cool.”

Rachel Lattin, the only senior winner, placed first in creative photography for her photo of a pincushion, showcasing multiple colored pins in contrasting sections. “It was kind of unexpected; I wasn’t really expecting to win out of everything.” Lattin exclaims on her win.  “I liked seeing the artwork from all the other schools… I think Perry was really strong, but there were some other really strong pieces from other schools in every category.” This marks another major achievement for the Arts Department, following all the accomplishments made by the Theater, Band, and Orchestra counterparts.

“Our art program, our fine arts, our visual arts, they’re probably one of the better programs around,” principal Dan Serrano states. “Every year we have several kids who win…I think they’re underrated, I mean the whole program is very successful, very strong. They do good work.” – See more at: https://phsprecedent.com/entertainment/2014/05/19/district-arts-show-displays-student-talent/#sthash.iLW4kimU.dpuf