Carlisle Students Shine in the Artistic Expressions Show
The annual Artistic Expressions Student Art Exhibit is currently on display at the Harrisburg Historic Association in Midtown Harrisburg, featuring exceptional high school artwork from 12 Central Pennsylvania school districts. We are proud to share that ten students from Carlisle High School were selected to represent CASD in this prestigious showcase.
The exhibit ran from April 4 through April 26. We are especially excited to celebrate three Carlisle students who received recognition for their outstanding work. Rylie Ginter earned Best in Show as well as the Students’ Choice Award. Angelina Rivera Felix was awarded a scholarship for a class at the Pennsylvania College of Art and Design. Abigail Carden received a $10,000 scholarship to the Pennsylvania College of Art and Design, should she choose to attend.
Congratulations to all participating students for their creativity, talent, and dedication. We encourage the community to visit the exhibit and celebrate these remarkable young artists.
Participating students include:
Charlotte Kretzing
Lucy Elston
Tommy Brown
Marin Eater
Jade Boltz
Angelina Rivera Felix
Evelyn Daniels
Nola Mayer
Abby Carden
Rylie Ginter
Carlisle Area School District Students Selected for Penn State Children’s Hospital “Art for Kids by Kids” Display
The Carlisle Area School District Art Department is proud to announce that student artwork has been selected for inclusion in the Art for Kids by Kids program at Penn State Children’s Hospital.
This meaningful initiative showcases student creativity while bringing comfort, encouragement, and joy to pediatric patients and their families. CASD is honored to participate in this opportunity that highlights the power of student voice through the visual arts.
Submissions from across the district included original two-dimensional artwork and photographs of three-dimensional pieces created by students in grades PK–12. All works were inspired by the theme Pennsylvania Nature (flora and fauna) and were thoughtfully developed to meet program guidelines.
Students approached this project with creativity and care, producing uplifting and colorful imagery intended to positively impact young patients during their time at the hospital.
The Art Department is proud of the students whose work was selected and grateful for their dedication to using art as a way to connect with and support others in the community.
Youth Art Month Art Show at the Carlisle Arts Learning Center
Many students in our school district will have their artwork featured in the annual exhibit hosted by the Carlisle Arts Learning Center (CALC). This special event is part of our Youth Art Month celebration, held each year to recognize and promote artistic creativity among young artists.
The exhibit will be on display from March 27th through April 19th at the CALC Art Gallery on Pomfret Street. We invite students, families, and friends to join us for the opening reception on Thursday, March 26th, from 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM. This festive event will feature stunning artwork, interactive art activities, and refreshments.
Wilson College Art Exhibit
Several talented students from Carlisle High School were selected to showcase their artwork in the Annual Juried High School Art Exhibition at Wilson College’s Bogigian Gallery. This distinguished exhibit highlights exemplary works from high school artists across the region, with over 150 submissions vying for limited spots. Carlisle High School had an impressive showing, with multiple students' pieces chosen to be part of the exclusive collection.
The selected Carlisle students include Aerelis Weaver, Rylie Ginter, Emily Rose, Lucy Elston, and Elisabeth Forrester. Their artworks represent a diverse range of media and techniques, showcasing the high level of skill, creativity, and dedication fostered within Carlisle High School’s art program.
The annual regional high school art competition highlighted exceptional talent from students across the area. This year, awards were presented to several outstanding student artists, with special recognition for their creativity and skill.
The 2nd place senior, Elisabeth Forrester from Carlisle High School, was awarded a one-time $1,500 art scholarship to Wilson College for her intricate wood and paint miniature book collection, which impressed judges with its unique craftsmanship and attention to detail.
The 3rd place senior, Arelis Weaver, also from Carlisle High School, received a one-time $1,000 art scholarship to Wilson College for her remarkable ceramic sculpture, which demonstrated a high level of technical skill and artistic expression.
Additionally, Rylie Ginter, an 11th grader at Carlisle High School, was recognized for her compelling black and white portrait in charcoal, showcasing her talent in capturing fine details and emotional depth through monochromatic tones.
These scholarships and recognitions reflect Wilson College’s commitment to supporting young artists as they pursue their creative and academic goals.
Scholastics 144 Show at Shippensburg University
Five talented juniors and seniors from Carlisle High School—Ethan Palumbo, Elisabeth Forrester, Marissa Stambaugh, Sean Bates, and Lucy Elston—were selected to showcase their artwork in the prestigious Scholastics 144 Art Show, sponsored by Shippensburg University. This juried exhibition highlights exceptional work by high school juniors and seniors from Pennsylvania and Maryland.
We are especially proud to announce that Elisabeth Forrester, Marissa Stambaugh, Sean Bates, and Lucy Elston received Honorable Mentions for their outstanding contributions to the show. Scholastics 144 challenges young artists with high standards, requiring two-dimensional pieces to fit within 144 square inches and three-dimensional works to remain under 12” x 12” x 12”. The exhibition awards up to $1,000 to recognize artistic excellence.
Sculpture & Ceramics Partnership with Dickinson College
On Saturday, November 11th students from Carlisle High School’s Sculpture & Ceramics classes and students from Dickinson College’s Sculpture & Ceramics program joined together to collaborate and learn from two Pennsylvania artists who work with clay. The two invited artists have different processes and motivations, one creates functional forms and the other sculptural. Students had the opportunity to watch a demonstration in the morning and then worked alongside college students on a small project, that was inspired by either method that the two demonstrating artists show.
This project was a collaboration between Carlisle High School’s Sculpture & Ceramics teacher, Suzanne Pagel and Dickinson College Sculpture & Ceramics professor, Rachel Eng. Students at Dickinson College plan to continue mentoring and working with students at Carlisle High School on future projects.
Relief Sculpture Mural at OIP
The Carlisle Area School District Art Department is proposing to collaborate with OIP and Carlisle Design to create an art installation that would be installed in the waiting area of the rehabilitation area of OIP. Approximately 120 students would be involved in creating ceramic tiles that would be installed on the walls. Carlisle High School’s ceramics teachers, Suzanne Pagel, will be facilitating the project with her students. Students would create round ceramic tiles that vary in size and installed to create movement within the waiting area space. The installation would be made up of at least 120 circular tiles. Below is a picture for reference to show an example of a tile (please note that the tiles will be circular and will have blue, silver, and white rather than just black and white).
Paint the Plow
PennDOT’s Paint the Plow Program began during the 2015-2016 winter season in Cambria County. In the years that followed, the program expanded into other areas of the state. Now PennDOT District 8 has encouraged local high schools in Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Perry, and York to participate. This year Carlisle High School’s National Art Honors Society students painted a plow, which features the bison driving a sled in snowy weather and a broken cell phone sitting in the snow. The plow shares the message “Put down your device in snow and ice!”
NAHS hopes to promote winter driving safety on state roadways. The decorative blades will be visible during winter snow removal on various roadways in the region. You can look out for Carlisle’s snow plow on Rt. 74 in Carlisle! A panel of judges comprised of PennDOT representatives and individuals from the respective county will participate in selecting a “Judges’ Pick” winner. The winning school’s plow will be judged on its creativity and ability to incorporate a winter driving safety message while blending with the year’s safety theme.
Additionally, photos of each painted plow will be posted on a PennDOT statewide online platform, where users will have the opportunity to vote for a “Fan Favorite.” Voting will be open to the public for a designated voting period. Participants are encouraged to look out for a press release announcing details of the voting period.
Empty Bowls
Carlisle High School’s National Art Honor Society (NAHS) is sponsoring their 13th annual Empty Bowls Event. Empty Bowls is an international effort to raise awareness in the fight to end hunger. Empty Bowls has raised millions of dollars for organizations fighting hunger and events take place in many states across the U.S. and many other countries. For our local chapter of NAHS, we donate our proceeds to Carlisle's Project SHARE.
This past fall students in Sculptures & Ceramics classes created ceramic mugs. National Art Honors Society students sold all but one mug at the Homecoming football game and all the proceeds will go to Project SHARE. Additionally, students offered a make-and-take workshop for CASD staff members. Participants created one bowl that they were able to keep and one bowls that was donated to sell.
LMS Creates Carlisle Community Inspired Mural
LMS students & the LMS Builders Club, under the guidance of art teacher, Mr. Gillock created a mural that was permanently installed in the LMS cafeteria.
At the beginning of the school year, Mr. Gillock established the Art Club that was made up of 8th grade art students. Students were only able to meet once or twice a week for 30 minutes at a time to complete the mural. The group was also split into two groups to avoid overcrowding. Each group took turns finishing the drawing of the final design and worked to revised one another’s work. Students then spent the remainder of the year painting each space of the mural. Each day Mr. Gillock discussed with the club members the importance of communication and effective teamwork to ensure the success of the final product.
Students were able to apply their own painting styles throughout the entire process. Students were encouraged to communicate as a group so that the design choices were beneficial to the mural as a whole and were agreed upon by the group. The final mural evolved over three years and now represents various changes and suggestions given by staff and students alike who watched the mural come to life day by day. This has been quite a project, spanning almost three years and approximately 60 hours of work.
The mural is located in the LMS Cafeteria and was inspired by the Carlisle Community which allowed students to learn more about Carlisle’s history. The final mural represents the following symbols that are representative of Carlisle:
CHS Students Create Unity Mural
Carlisle High School art students created a unity mural at the Carlisle Police Station this past summer. The Unity Mural is based on an illustration by Jeremy Tritle that appeared on yard signs about a year ago. The illustration shows a Black and white hand with fingers intertwined beside the message “We Need Each Other to Survive.” CHS art students worked in teams to allow for social distancing to create a mural using Jeremy Tritle’s design. The team consisted of seniors Leah Bowman and Dervla Dolan and past CHS graduates, Catherine Davis, Danielle Fevola, and Madi Tack.
In September Dervla Dolan & Leah Bowman presented the project to the Rotary Club of Carlisle. Students prepared the presentation and presented alongside Chief Taro Landis, Pastor Jeff Gibelius, and art teacher, Ashley Gogoj.
CHS Students Participate in Artist in Residency for the I Am Fine Project
The students in the Mrs. Pagel’s Sculpture & Ceramics 2, 3, & 4 classes participated in a virtual Artist in Residence throughout the month of March. Students had the opportunity to work with local artists, Maureen Joyce and Carrie Breschi as part of the I’m fine. project. I’m fine. is dedicated to artist Maureen Joyce’s son, Patrick, who completed his life in 2018 after struggling with mental illness. Students created ceramic masks that represented mental health struggles and awareness.
Over 250 ceramic masks have been created during meaningful workshops over the past year as part of the project. Anonymous stories of survival have also been written, illustrated and submitted to the project. Both the masks and the stories will contribute to community-engaged conversations and to the statewide traveling exhibit, I’m fine., whose purpose is to sculpt mental health awareness and to promote available resources.