School Bulletin: Mequon student's art hits museums

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- A Mequon student was hesitant but took a risk entering an art contest. But after winning, one of Julia Gaskin's pieces was on display at the Milwaukee Art Museum.

"I was honestly really surprised," Gaskin, a Homestead High School senior, says. "Even when I won at the regional level, I was like wow -- I won that?"

Gaskin submitted pieces to the Scholastic Art Competition; won a gold and silver medal regionally, and then she won a national silver medal for "Airplane Sketches." She says her creativity took off while on a flight to Florida.

"It was a just a line experiment, a color experiment. I ended up really liking how it turned out, so I made it into a full piece," Gaskin says.

The 17-year-old says she often uses her iPad to draw and create collages, and she often finds inspiration from photos on the social media app Pinterest. But Gaskin says one of her favorite canvasses is actually cardboard.

"I can't draw on just a blank white piece of paper," she says. "But with cardboard it's already been used. It's got all of the spots on it and everything, and you can imagine there's been a story. Then you can tell the story through the art that you're making.

Gaskin is an Advanced Placement 2D Art & Design student finalizing her portfolio to be critiqued later this spring. She says her emotions have influenced how her art has developed this year, and her national recognition has given her a boost.

"It's really helped me to be more confident in my art and be prouder of what I make," Gaskin says.

After graduation, Gaskin says she will study video game design in college. Before high school ends though, she will have a new piece on display at the Museum of Wisconsin Art in West Bend. The MOWA Teen Council's exhibition, "Breaking the Cycle," will be on view April 22 to July 9, 2023.