High school artists' work on display at Navy Pier's first in-person international expo since 2019
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Navy Pier welcomed about 8,000 art lovers over the weekend. It was the first in-person international art expo since 2019.
On display were rare pieces worth tens of thousands of dollars, but Morning Insider Lauren Victory also found work by some budding artists in high school.
Whether painting, cutting, or gluing; creativity is always encouraged in the Michele Clark High School art lab.
"It's hearts coming off of the branches," said senior Jakira Swift, describing her latest piece as a reflection of her growth.
Promise Hawkins has been experimenting with skin tones.
"I just take a canvas and I do what I'm feeling," said Hawkins, a junior.
Recently Hawkins' artwork became artwork itself when photographer Marzena Abrahamik took photos of Hawkins and her peers. Abrahamik is the school's "artist in residence," courtesy of CPS Lives, a non-profit that pairs professionals with Chicago Public Schools.
"She was setting up the cameras, the lighting, the backdrop," explains Hawkins, who aspires to be photographer herself.
"The more she talked to me, the more ideas I got," said Swift.
The stroke of inspiration deserved more exploration, so Abrahamik's mentees traveled to her world at Navy Pier on Friday. Inside, art dealers, curators, and collectors gazed at thousands of pieces in the EXPO Chicago show
Amid the more than 100 booths, there were familiar faces on display.
"I've learned so much from you," said Abrahamik, talking to her high school visitors.
Turns out, while she was teaching them, they were teaching her. The photos she'd take of Hawkins and her classmates were fuel for her latest project about the life of a girl.
"I don't think I would have ever had the opportunity to come into contact and to engage with young high school women," said Abrahamik.
She and CPS Lives decided to dedicate part of their real estate at the EXPO to work by the students. A poster designed by Hawkins made the cut.
"I'm excited for other people to see how I look at art," she said.
CPS Lives hopes to bring many more partnerships like to this to other schools.
CPS Lives pays about 20 professional artists to pair with Chicago Public Schools right now.