Art by Mount Tabor and North Forsyth Students Win Awards at Piedmont Federal's Artizens Gala

Nicholas Milligan & Wilbert Alvarez

At the 2013 Artizens gala on April 18, Nicholas Milligan of Mount Tabor High School was awarded first place for his picture Featherz. First place came with $500.

Wilbert Alvarez, a student at North Forsyth High School, received an honorable mention for his picture Sweet Spirit. He received $300.

Artizens is sponsored by Piedmont Federal Savings Bank, and the winners were chosen from among 80 pictures that had been on display in Piedmont Federal’s eight branches in Forsyth County. The judges were John Blackburn, Clare Fader and Susan Morris. After looking at all 80 pictures, Fader said, “I was stunned by the caliber of the work.” 

She said that she was impressed by the students’ attention to detail, innovation and unique vision. “Just a breath of fresh air, really,” she said. 

Matt Fussell, the school system’s lead art teacher for visual arts, works really hard coordinating everything with the art teachers at the schools, said Wanda Merschel, a Piedmont Federal senior vice president. “Matt has been a wonderful liaison.”

At the gala, he was recognized for his efforts.

Matt Fussell

While the art was on display at the branches, people were invited to vote on the art for a People’s Choice award. At the branch level, each artist who had a work displayed received $25 and the People Choice winner received $150.

The art department at every participating high school received $350 with the art department that had the first-place winner receiving an additional $500 and the department with the honorable-mention winner receiving an additional $300. 

This is the third year that Artizens has included all the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County high schools and high schools in surrounding counties where Piedmont federal has branches. Artizens started about six years ago as an exhibition of student art at the Peace Haven branch of Piedmont Federal.

“We recognized that there was a real thirst on the part of teachers and students to have on outlet for students’ work,” Merschel said.

Since the program began, Piedmont Federal has given about $30,000 to students and high school art departments.

To see all of the Artizen pictures, go to  Artizens