Six local student artists named 2021 JMArts Scholars

SILER CITY, N.C. — Six students have been named JMArts Scholars by the Jordan-Matthews Arts Foundation, all receiving scholarships to pursue intensive fine arts study this summer.

They are Laci Burt, Suzette Campos Herrera, Jocelyn Lopez Mejia, Carrie Shelton, Maggie Thornton and Emma Wieber.

Scholarships are funded through individual contributions to the foundation and income generated from ticket sales for the annual fall musical, fundraising projects and admission from a few major concerts during the academic year.

“I’m proud of all these young women for sustaining their commitment to the arts during the pandemic,” said JMArts President Rose Pate. “A creative outlet’s role in academic success and mental health has been shown to be more important than ever this last year.”

This year's scholars represent music, theater and visual arts — all areas of the arts at Jordan-Matthews High School.

Burt will attend the Temple Theatre Advanced Teen Musical Theatre Conservatory.

Thornton will attend the NC State University High School Music Technology Camp.

Wieber will attend the Drum Major Academy at UNC Charlotte.

Shelton and Lopez Mejia will attend the UNC Greensboro Summer Arts and Design Intensive, being offered virtually this summer.

And Campos Herrera will pursue private voice lessons with Matt Fry, former Jordan-Matthews vocal music teacher and recipient of the North Carolina Symphony’s 2020 Jackson Parkhurst Award for Special Achievement.

Two JMArts Scholars who are graduating this spring, but were not able to attend arts workshops last year because of the pandemic, have been awarded $400 college scholarships. They are visual artist Tiana Brooks, who is attending Appalachian State University, and musician Josselyn Gonzalez Hernandez, who is attending UNC Greensboro.

“Even though most of these programs are not residential this year, they are still a wonderful opportunity,” said Pate. “These students will be fully immersed in the arts and will develop relationships beyond our school that will expand their horizons for the future.”

Since creating the awards nine years ago, JMArts has presented 73 scholarships to 49 students, with some receiving awards to study for more than one summer. The initiative was designed to help young artists develop their talent, explore artistic options before making their college decisions and bring what they learn back to share with other Jordan-Matthews students.

Businesses and individuals interested in contributing to the JMArts Scholars program or other projects for high school artists may contact Pate at 919-742-2916 or rpate@chatham.k12.nc.us. Checks can be mailed to JMArts, PO Box 395, Siler City, NC, 27344.

More information about JMArts, including details about JMArts Scholars and upcoming events, is available at jmarts.org.

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JMArts Scholars preparing for study this summer are (standing from left) Carrie Shelton, Emma Wieber, Laci Burt, Maggie Thornton, Jocelyn Lopez Mejia and (in front) Suzette Campos Herrera. (Photo by Chip Pate)

Artist Tiana Brooks commissioned for first-ever JMArts spring greeting cards

SILER CITY, N.C. — Tiana Brooks, a senior artist at Jordan-Matthews High School and JMArts Scholar, was commissioned to create work for the first-ever JMArts spring greeting cards now on sale.

Her digital work, “symbol of strength”, will appear on greeting cards sold by JMArts, the Jordan-Matthews Arts Foundation, to raise money for JM artists. Brooks received $100 for the rights to reproduce her work.

The greeting cards are designed for any occasion and planned for sale before Mother’s Day, graduation and other spring occasions. They feature the digital work on the front with a blank area inside for personal messages. The back lists the name of the artist and her work, along with a very short artist statement.

Brooks was recently selected as one of 35 high school artists statewide to exhibit work at The 2021 Emerging Artists Invitational, an exhibition for high school artists sponsored by the Darrell E. Sechrest Art Gallery and the High Point University School of Art and Design. Her mixed media work, “Say Their Names”, is appearing now in the exhibition being held online this year due to the pandemic. The exhibition runs through April 19.

Preorders for JMArts greeting cards are now being accepted online at JMArtsGreetingCards.com. Packets of 10 cards and 12 envelopes are $10 each at the Jordan-Matthews High School office — or $13 by mail to domestic addresses. The domain forwards to a Google form, where you can place an order and pay online with a credit card or through the mail by cash or check.

More information about JMArts, including a schedule of upcoming arts events and information on membership, is available online at JMArts.org.

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The front and back panels of this spring’s JMArts greeting cards featuring Tiana Brooks’s digital work, “symbol of strength”.

Tiana Brooks selected to exhibit work at The 2021 Emerging Artists Invitational

SILER CITY, N.C. — Tiana Brooks, a senior at Jordan-Matthews High School and JMArts Scholar, was one of 35 high school artists statewide chosen to exhibit work at The 2021 Emerging Artists Invitational, an annual exhibition for high school artists sponsored by the Sechrest Gallery of Art and the High Point University School of Art and Design.

Her mixed media work, “Say Their Names”, is appearing now in the exhibition being held online this spring due to the pandemic. In past years, the event has taken place in the art gallery and has culminated with a daylong special program for students featuring workshops, tours of High Point art facilities and a special reception to honor the works on exhibition.

This year’s virtual exhibition runs through April 19. It can be viewed at highpoint.edu/artdesign/2021/03/11/emerging_artists_2021/ by scrolling through the slide show and clicking on any image for a larger view of the work. During the exhibition, the Sechrest Gallery will announce special prizes and feature each work on its Instagram feed.

“This piece was created for the sole purpose of remembering the Black women who lost their lives in the hands of police officers,” Brooks said of her work. “We must remember these women and fight for their rights and justice.”

Themes of compassion, understanding and justice run through much of Brooks’ work, one reason among many that JM art teacher Rahkie Mateen-Mason has developed such respect for the young artist. “We often hear that life imitates art, but art also imitates life,” Mateen-Mason said. “In Tiana’s piece, ‘Say their Names’, Tiana tackled a really tough subject. I think what I admire most about Tiana is that her art is so personal that it often becomes universal.”

Brooks received first place in “Path to the Woods,” a 2019 juried art show at Jordan-Matthews held in conjunction with the high school’s stage production of “Into the Woods.” She has exhibited at other shows in the area including the 2019 Chatham Artists Guild Studio Tour Student Show, received her school’s 2020 Young Artist Award and was named a 2020 JMArts Scholar, an annual honor awarding scholarships for intensive study over the summer at weeklong, residential workshops offered on university campuses.

More information about JMArts, including a schedule of upcoming arts events and information on membership, is available online at JMArts.org.

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“Say Their Names”, a mixed media work by Jordan-Matthews artist Tiana Brooks, is on exhibit through April 19 as one of 35 works selected statewide for The 2021 Young Artists Invitational.

JMArts Scholar Tiana Brooks with her mixed media work “The Beauty Within” — the first of four works in sequence — that was exhibited in Siler City as part of the 2019 Chatham Artists Guild Studio Tour Student Show.