Righetti High School's 22nd Annual Art Show & Chalk Festival this week transformed the school gym in Santa Maria into a professional-grade gallery featuring over 2,000 original student works.
The exhibition is more than a showcase it serves as a mandatory capstone industry experience and final grade for students enrolled in the school's visual and performing arts courses, many of which are part of Career Technical Education (CTE) pathways.
Students spend the entire school year preparing, and are responsible for curating, matting, labeling, and staging their own displays.
"The students work all year towards this show, and while most of Righetti's art courses are in a CTE pathway — something that sets us apart — all our courses require this public exhibition as their final grade and industry experience," Elesa Carlson, Righetti High School VPA department chair, said.
On Thursday, May 28, the festival expanded onto the school quad for the largest group of chalk muralists in school history according to school officials, with more than 75 live chalk art murals.
Santa Maria Joint Union High School District employees were invited to a private daytime viewing to watch students construct their murals live.
The completed murals remained on display during Thursday's public evening show.
