The Unit 5 Art Show will showcase an array of artwork from students across the district on April 30 at Normal Community from 6 p.m. to 8.

The event features student work from all four middle schools and both high schools in a range of mediums, including ceramics, sculpture, graphic design, photography, drawings and paintings.

Community’s Art department head Mrs. Jennifer Kelly said thfeatures art from a “variety of students at different levels,” with each school contributing approximately 50 pieces to display.

Students, Kelly said, select which pieces to submit to the show from the work they’ve created over the course of the semester.

The district’s art teachers will award first and second-place “Teacher’s Choice” prizes to their favorite works on display.

While awards will acknowledge select student creations, Kelly said the show’s primary aim is to provide students with a platform to showcase their hard work.

“We want them to feel good about what they’re doing,” Kelly said.

The show is just one opportunity for Community students to show off their art skills: In December, Community hosted an art open house that showcased over 200 unique pieces from the high school’s art courses.

Earlier this spring, eight Community students competed in the 97th annual McLean County Amateur Art Competition. At the exhibit, a panel of professional artists awarded Shreya Mokashi first place for “Metamorphic Butterflies,” a piece she created for  Kelly’s Advanced Studio Art class. as the best submitted from around the county. Along with the honor of best graphic illustration by a McLean County high schooler,  Mokashi recieved a $75 prize.

The senior class recognized Isha Gollapudi and Emily Broadfield as the Class of 2024’s “Best Artists” on Friday, April 26, an award decided by class vote.

The Unit 5 Art Show is in it’s second-year, returning last year after nearly a 10-year hiatus.