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AUM offers ideal canvas for emerging local artists

Montgomery area high school student Harmony Koda (left) holds up a printed piece of artwork while Auburn University at Montgomery Department of Fine Arts Chair William Fenn kneeling to the right.

Emerging local artists ages 13 to 62 from the Montgomery region will have an opportunity to showcase their creativity through a partnership between a local high school student and Auburn University at Montgomery.

The “Imagination Station,” a juried art exhibition for unestablished artists from Montgomery, Autauga and Elmore counties, will be featured at AUM’s Cason McDermott Art Gallery from Tuesday, Oct. 8, to Thursday, Oct. 31. The Imagination Station concept originated with Harmony Koda, a student at Loveless Academic Magnet Program (LAMP) High School who participated in a summer digital illustration workshop hosted by AUM’s Department of Fine Arts.

Koda, working in collaboration with AUM Department of Fine Arts Chair William Fenn (Koda is pictured at left, Fenn to the right), launched the Imagination Station to create opportunities for artists 12-and-over from the three-county region. Artists were invited to submit original works created within the last three years for consideration by a review panel.

“We’re proud to help Harmony bring her vision into existence,” Fenn said, “and we look forward to helping the Imagination Station showcase the creativity within our community in the years to come.”

The artists whose works will be featured include 13-year-old Harper Evans, 13-year-old Gwenyth Holley, 14-year-old Helena Izel Rosales Barrios, 16-year-old Gracie Kieu Niolet, 38-year-old Ashley Harris, and 62-year-old Roger Foster.

Harris, a Montgomery native, said fine arts has been a hobby since early childhood.

“Over the years, my art has evolved, but there’s a constant,” she said. “I enjoy creating images that come from the imaginative spaces in my mind. Creating meaningful pieces of art and inspiring others brings me joy.”

Rosales Barrios, a freshman at LAMP, aspires to be a veterinarian but said fine arts has helped her express her cultural background and navigate life changes after moving from Mexico to the United States.

“I didn’t know how to express all those feelings that I had, until one day I decided to start drawing random things,” she said. “I started practicing more and more, upon reaching he point where I wanted to try something new.”

She started experimenting with painting, beginning with acrylics before moving on to oil. “I never took art classes,” she said. “With YouTube videos and reels from Instagram, I taught myself and now I’m satisfied with the artist I became. To improve as an artist, I try not to stop creating.”

The public can enjoy the free exhibit by visiting the McDermott Gallery in Goodwyn Hall on the AUM campus, Monday-Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. A reception in celebration of the artists will be held at the gallery on Friday, Oct. 18, from 5:30-6:30 p.m.

The Cason McDermott Art Gallery is named after the late Cason Leigh McDermott, a 2018 AUM Fine Arts graduate who dreamed of being an artist and a college professor. The professional exhibit space features works by regionally and nationally recognized visiting artists, as well as AUM faculty and students.

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