Published On: May 1st, 2020By Leticia Fehling

15 District Students Receive State VASE Awards Recognition, 1 Earns Gold Seal

State VASE is the culminating event of a year of hard work and creative genius.

Alexa Soto received a Gold Seal for her artwork, “Kaleidoscope.” The Gold Seal if the highest honor bestowed at the State VASE. Alexa attends Nimitz HS, and her art teacher is Jorge Vásquez.

This year, more than 35,800 pieces of art competed in VASE (Visual Arts Scholastic Event). Regional-level at events took place across the state in January and February to determine area finalists to advance to the state event. Typically, the state event takes place in San Marcos, TX. The coronavirus pandemic changed things. Instead, adjudication for the State VASE (Visual Arts Scholastic Event) was held virtually on April 24.

Alexa Soto, “Kaleidoscope”

Advancing to the state event is the culminating event of a year of hard work and creative genius. It’s highly competitive. To be considered for possible advancement to State VASE, works had to earn a 4 (Exemplary) rating. These pieces are judged again. From there, only the top 10% of the artworks advance. No artwork with a rating less than a 4 rating qualifies for the Area event.

A total of 20 Aldine ISD students advanced to the State VASE. Of these, 15 students received medals for scoring a 4 Rating on their works, and one student received a 5 rating, which is the highest score at the state event.

Gold Seal — The Pinnacle of Artistic Success in the VASE Program

Student Alexa Soto is the student who earned a 5 rating. She was among the recipients of the Gold Seal, the highest honor of the state event. It’s an impressive feat considering only 150 pieces make it to the Gold Seal level. To put it in perspective, Gold Seals represent less than 0.42% of all artworks from across Texas that competed in VASE. These works will travel the state and be exhibited at the annual conference.

Dr. Michaelann Kelley, the director of visual arts, lauded the students and art teachers.

“State VASE is the culminating event of a year,” said Kelley. “It’s the culmination of hard work and creativity on behalf of the talented art students, teachers, and district administrators who support our art program. The number of works that received a medal is outstanding! And we are all so proud of Alexa on her Gold Seal recognition.”

Aldine ISD State VASE Award Recipients

Aldine High School

Emily Soto, “A Traveler’s Pride”

José Cardenas for The Time Traveler
Art Teacher: Birgit Lanhammer

Blanson CTE High School

Emily Fuentes for A Traveler’s Pride
Art Teacher: Abigail Edwards

Raquel Reyes for The Serene Lake of Dreams
Art Teacher: Chris Peel

Jasrotia Sarrthi for Mor
Art Teacher: Chris Peel

Carver High School

Daniela Vásquez for La Leyenda (The Legend)

María Portillo, “Crimson”

Art Teacher: Laura Luna

Davis High School

Janet Duong for New Beginnings
Art Teacher: Jenni Settle

MacArthur High School

Shonease Murphy for Cool Disposition
Art Teacher: Elliot Chow

Jeremy Pérez for Illusion of the Mind
Art Teacher: Elliott Chow

María Portillo for Crimson
Art Teacher: James Voss

Raquel Reyes, “The Serene Lake of Dreams”

Jeffrey Ventura for Anatomical Compression
Art Teacher, Rebecca DeGroot

Nimitz Nimitz Ninth Grade School

Sandra Castillo for Stick to It
Art Teacher: Karen Caldwell

Nimitz High School

Cristina Castillo for Anatomy of Meaning
Art Teacher, Jorge Vásquez

Alexa Soto for Kaleidoscope of Existence — Gold Seal*

Sandra Castillo, “Stick to It”

Art Teacher: Jorge Vásquez

Ayiana Stubblefield for Golden Order
Art Teacher: Jorge Vásquez

Vy Van for Rainy Day in My Imagination
Art Teacher: Jorge Vásquez

Victory Early College High School

Arianna Toups for Headache
Art Teacher: Tommie Sanders

The mission of the High School Visual Arts Scholastic Event (VASE) is to recognize exemplary student achievement in the Visual Arts by providing high school art students and programs a standard of excellence in which to achieve.

The mission of the High School Visual Arts Scholastic Event (VASE) is to recognize exemplary student achievement The first VASE event was held in 1994 with just over 400 student entries; after 25 years, High School VASE entries number around 35,000. Students create artworks, write about their creative processes and understanding of visual art, and articulate information about their artwork during an interview with a VASE juror, who evaluates their work using a standards-based rubric.

Academically eligible high school students in grades 9-12 from throughout Texas can participate in VASE.

To learn more or to see all the artworks by Aldine ISD students that earned recognition, visit the Texas Art Education Association website.