By MOLLY DAVIDSON / Staff Writer

PELHAM—Valley Intermediate School hallways were turned into an art exhibit on May 1 as the school hosted the annual Shelby County Art Show. Parents, students and teachers alike wandered the halls admiring the artwork of students from all 32 Shelby County schools.

Each school, from elementary through high school, was given a section of wall to display the work created by their students throughout the year. Works given the Superintendent’s Award were displayed along with other notable pieces from each school. Space limitations gave teachers the difficult task of choosing what work to display.

“It’s hard because we only have so much space,” Riverchase Middle School art teacher Katherine Phillips said, noting that she chose 36 pieces with a higher representation of eighth grade students’ work. “I have an advanced eighth grade class this year, and it’s the last opportunity to show their work.”

Pelham High School art and photography teacher Kim Hinds said her department chose to feature work from students who tried the hardest, not necessarily those in the highest level classes.

“We selected the ones that put in the most effort and excelled at the technique,” Hinds said.

The exhibition demonstrated the depth and breadth of the art curriculum taught at the Shelby County schools. Artwork ranged form pencil drawings and paintings to mixed-media and printmaking.

“We do a variety of different projects and media,” Phillips said, pointing out her students’ quilling pieces, three-dimensional images made from strips of paper.

“We try to introduce as many mediums for them to see as possible,” Hinds said, adding her Art 1 class explores a variety of styles from printmaking to painting, and thanks to the facilities at Pelham High School, can learn sculpture as well.

“I grab inspiration from all over the place, if I don’t give (my students) a wide range, I’m doing a disservice to them,” Phillips said.