Art can come in many different shapes, sizes, forms, and appearances. If you’re passionate about something you tend to be good at it regardless of how hard you try. 

Taylor Clark, a sophomore, set foot in the waters of competition for Battle for the Paddle to see if her design would win against Sandpoint. It won and not only did it win the competition but it really caught Mr. Derrick’s attention and he was extremely impressed.

As a girl who is passionate about art, she “didn’t try that hard” which some may find shocking because the painting was chosen to get placed inside our school’s wall of fame. This wall is where pictures of people and other important memorable things are available for all eyes.

Clark may not stand out like an athlete or a cheerleader, but to Mrs. Gravatt, Lakeland’s art teacher, Clark stands out quite a bit. Gravatt, who hasn’t even had her in her art class yet, sees “how amazing she is with colors and using her imagination.” She hopes she’ll join her class eventually but she’s currently in a jewelry class.

Not only does she love and appreciate Clark, but she was also one of Clark’s inspirations. The connection between the two; a teacher and a student, could be known as extremely uncommon, but the two share the same interests and feel the same way about each other.

When breaking the news to Clark that her art piece will be placed in one of the most important cases in the building, her face lit up with excitement, shock, and glee. She was unable to speak and happened to look down the hall at the very spot it would be placed.

According to Clark, she has been into art since she “could barely walk” and her parents were the main people who got her into it. 

She states, “I feel pretty good about it even though I didn’t try as hard as I should’ve but I still really like it. I’m beyond shocked to know that Mr. Derrick likes it enough to go in that case.”

Her goals for the future would be “to improve my art skills and think of any ideas that could possibly be used for next year. I’ll just have to find out what the theme is when the time comes.”