Artistic Opportunities

By Maya Moore

Clubs provide a creative outlet for many students. Some choices for those who wish to use their artistic talents and be creative are Ceramics, Photography and Creative Writing.
Ceramics Club meets every Tuesday and Thursday from 3-4:30 p.m. Students can show up during either or both times, as long as they pay the $10 fee for materials.
“Students come into this classroom, they get clay, and for an hour and a half they get to just create whatever they want to make,” said sponsor Amber Harris, the ceramics teacher. “I just feel like this is a fun, safe place for students to gather and visit and listen to music and be creative.”
Junior Leann Tran, president of the club, described the welcoming community.
“Everyone there is pretty friendly, even though not everyone knows each other,” said Tran. “They do talk to each other a lot. They’ve pretty much bonded.”
To join Ceramics Club, students can contact Harris or Tran. There is also more information on the posters around the school.
Another opportunity to express creativity is Photography Club. The club is new this year and typically meets every couple of weeks on Tuesday or Friday. They do different activities and learn about how to improve their photography skills.
“We usually go to the Crusader Lounge and we discuss which activities we think would be best,” said sophomore Madi Rowell, co-president of Photography Club. “Or I have an activity planned, and I let them go take pictures of something I assigned to them. I let them share photos with me, and I can show them how to edit it in easier ways.”
The club’s other co-president, freshman Maylin Mejia-Molina explained what she likes about the club.
“I’m really interested in photography,” said Mejia-Molina. “I like taking pictures a lot. I enjoy that we’re all together and collaborating with students from different grades.”
Even outside of meetings, club members enjoy discussing photography, said Rowell.
“Usually, we tend to take pictures of anything, and then we send it in the GroupMe,” said Rowell. “It’s really fun to see what pictures they like to take, and see what pictures they’re really skilled at taking.”
If a student is interested in joining Photography Club, they can talk to sponsor Ben Riley, Rowell or Mejia-Molina.
An alternative opportunity, for those interested in writing, is Creative Writing Club. Creative Writing Club meets most Wednesdays from 3-4 p.m. in Room 213. It is a good opportunity to learn more about creative writing and gain new skills, said sophomore Leo Austin, president of the club.
“Students learn different elements of story writing and just how to put together a story in general,” said Austin. “CWC is full of students who each have an individual, unique writing style, which is one of the things that makes it as fun as it is. Sometimes we will work on a group writing project and I love seeing all the different styles coming together to make one story.”
Junior Jaylynn Sharau, vice president of Creative Writing Club, talked about the benefits of sharing creativity within a community.
“My goal is to foster an environment where creative minds can grow together,” said Sharau. “If you’re by yourself, you have these, all these cool ideas and stuff, but the moment you tell them to someone else and they start building on that idea, it’s just a magical feeling. And I live for that.”
To participate in Creative Writing Club, simply show up to Room 213 on Wednesdays after school.