More than 1,000 works of art from Lee County students are on display

PHOTO COURTESY ALIANCE OF THE ARTS Life is a journey not a destination by Pavol Roskoszensky And this in not just refrigerator art; these are accomplished visual artists with tons of talent, organizers said. In fact, the top artist in the show will earn a scholarship to attend ArtStudy in Giverny, France - home of Claude Monet's gardens - to work with international artist Gale Bennett.

Pavol Roskoszensky, a Mariner High School student, was judged best in the show last year. Today, some of Roskoszensky's work is featured in top galleries such as Space 39 in downtown Fort Myers.

Art teachers from Lee County who are members of the Lee County Art Education Association put on the show.

"Student work is selected by the teachers," said Carolyn Gora, a teacher at Cypress Lake Middle School who helped organize the event. "Usually there are around 45 elementary and middle school teachers who hang their own show…there ends up being more than 1000 works of art in every medium imaginable!"

Artwork is displayed in 9 different categories, ranging from the traditional fine arts to the modern digital arts. Art teachers at each school jury entries for the high school division of the LAEA exhibit. Then once they are on display, judges select the winners in several categories with the first place winners qualifying for best in show.

The Alliance for the Arts galleries is open from 9 am to 5 pm Monday through Friday and from 10 am to 3 pm on Saturdays. The Alliance is located at 10091 McGregor Boulevard just south of Colonial Boulevard. Visit www.artinlee.org for more details. n