Special to The Message
During a Jan. 30 Catholic Schools Week assembly at Holy Rosary School in Evansville, Holy Rosary art teacher Michelle Weisman announced the eighth annual Holy Rosary School Respect Life Art Show winners.
Weisman thanked the Respect Life Committee for sponsoring the contest and for their continued support. She also thanked students for their work on the projects, “for caring about the outcome and for exceeding my expectations! It is an honor to be your guide and biggest cheerleader!”
Weisman then expressed gratitude to the students who helped choose the winners and Catholic Financial Life Branch 1051 out of St. Henry for last year’s donation that still provides opportunities for Holy Rosary artists.
All finalists received an award certificate from Weisman, while the Respect Life Committee provided monetary gift cards to the winners in each category: first-place winners were given Azzip Pizza gift cards, second-place winners received Donut Bank gift cards and third-place winners were given Lic’s Deli and Ice Cream gift cards.
The top three finalists and winners in each division for 2024-25 are:
In the kindergarten through second grade category: Payton Elliot placed first, Lilly Coslett placed second and Chloe Will placed third.
In the third to fifth grade category: Eleanor LeGate placed first, Elijah Pickerill placed second and Kaitlyn Patterson placed third.
In the sixth to eighth grade category, Clare Wilson placed first, Jacob Hinton placed second and Anderson Schmitt placed third.
The following are highlights for each project by grade level provided by Weisman.
Kindergarten — They discussed that a symbol is an object that reminds us of something else, and doves symbolize peace and the Holy Spirit in the Catholic faith. They looked at flying white doves and then created a simple line drawing using oil pastels. They discussed how oil and water do not mix while watching the repelling action of their liquid watercolor paints glide over our oil pastel drawings. There were lots of ohs and ahs!
First Grade — They talked about how God takes care of everyone, and guides them, sometimes without them knowing He is there. The students retold the story of Noah, including what they remembered of Noah sending out birds to look for dry land. They remembered that a dove found a twig and God sent a rainbow to remind Noah of hope and his love. Using yarn and a twig they found outside, the students created a rainbow using a simple Macramé knot called a Lark’s Head. After the twig had many colors, they added foam symbols of their faith. Some students created a dove, some a chalice and others a palm branch.
Second Grade — While the students were studying the saints in their homerooms, they also discussed many things that some saints did during their lives. They looked at the prayer cards in the art room (St. Mary, St. Joseph, St. Anthony, St. Mother Theodore Guerin and others). They talked about the saints that some people are named after, like Michael, Cecilia, Brigitte, Norbert and others. They discussed what kinds of things make them think of certain saints. For instance, Mary may have baby Jesus in her arms. Others may have a bible or rosary to show their prayer life. This project allowed students to capture a saint without capturing the details of their face. They focused on their achievements and ideals instead.
Third Grade — They watched a BBC video touring Henri Matisse’s Chapel. The Chapelle du Rosaire de Vence (Chapel of the Rosary), often referred to as the Vence Chapel, is a small Catholic chapel located in the town of Vence, France. Matisse designed and created the chapel for a nurse, Sister Jacques-Marie (Monique) Bourgeois. She took care of Matisse during a long recovery from cancer surgery. Taking inspiration from this chapel, they used vibrant tissue paper in organic shapes as Matisse created then included black silhouettes of Christ, doves, roses and other symbols that reminded them of Mary, Jesus and their faith.
Fourth Grade — After looking at photos of the stained-glass windows at Holy Rosary Church and Notre Dame de Paris’s Rose windows, they talked about the religious images that these windows depict. They traced symbols of their faith and created simple shapes around them. They painted the shapes and outlined them with colored glue to emulate the look of vibrant stained glass and leading.
Fifth Grade — They talked about how our Catholic teachings can inspire them to be like Christ and how the saints inspire them to be strong in faith, especially Saints Mary and Joseph. After finding inspiration from the Russian artist Marc Chagall’s dream-like art like White Crucifixion (1938), The Madonna of the Village (1938-1942) and I and the Village (1911), they created a mix of symbols and images from the life of Mary, Joseph and Jesus, from their faith, and from what could look like their dreams. They used watercolor paint on canvas.
Sixth Grade — After taking a pictorial tour of the Holy Rosary church and school campus, they discussed the symbols, architecture, statues and natural beauty that remind them of their Catholic faith. They then looked at ways to draw using only black ink by stippling, scumbling or creating hatching lines. They used Ultra fine-tipped Sharpie and felt-tipped markers on Bristol paper to complete the artwork. Some students chose the tabernacle as their subject, the aerial view of Holy Rosary Church or the statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Seventh Grade — They talked about Jesus and how he is depicted in a variety of artworks. Students then chose various media like watercolor paints, oil pastels, acrylic paint, metal carving (Repoussé) and/or a mix of media to create their portrait of Christ.
Eighth Grade — They talked about the choices they make to respect others. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops states, “As Catholics, we believe that every life is sacred, from the moment of conception until natural death. Every person is made in the image and likeness of God and so each and every person has inherent dignity.” Students were given the option of painting, wood carving, wire sculpting or drawing their own concept. This year, some chose painting while others chose mixed media on canvas. Each piece is very different.