Senior Patricia Deogracias will have her art work displayed this year at the Florida State Fair. This is the first year a Wiregrass student has entered and displayed work at the State Fair. The works that will be displayed are a series of digital works that center on the memories of her family and life in the Philippines. Her work was an illustrated story of a boy coming home from school.

This isn’t the first time Deogracias has entered her artwork on this type of platform. Her work was also displayed at the Dali Museum in St. Petersburg last summer; she entered her AP 2D Studio concentration works from last year, scoring a 5 on her portfolio. She was awarded a scholarship to attend Massart in Boston, which is an option she is considering for furthering her education.

Art teacher Paula Roush-Smith, is impressed with Patricia’s work and all that she has accomplished.

“She is a true joy to have in the art room, a very dedicated and hard working art student,” Smith stated. “She enjoys the time and effort it takes to complete extraordinary work that makes her an award-winning artist.”

Out of 350 students from 80 schools in 20 different counties, only 32 student portfolios were chosen by the panel of jurors to exhibit at the 2019 Florida State Fair. The students that were accepted for exhibition all had portfolios with a consistent body of work.

Deogracias was a bit astonished with her achievement.

“I mean, I can’t be too surprised, since a huge part of being an artist is showing our work out there for others to see. Although normally, I wouldn’t be the one to advertise it on the internet on my own accord,” Deogracias explained. “The idea that my artwork was chosen by judges to be displayed for a formal exhibit to a new audience was astonishing.”