Students will have a chance to see their art on display at the Turnage Theatre. Arts of the Pamlico, in collaboration with BCCC art instructor Heea Crownfield, will display students’ final projects at the Turnage Theatre starting Jan. 12. Local artists Art Tyndall and Tom Whelan will be displaying their work in the main gallery during the opening from 5:30-7 p.m.

Students taking Crownfield’s art appreciation course spend the first part of the semester learning about elements and principles of design. This includes light, color and form. With a basic understanding of art, they move into learning about different mediums such as paintings, drawings and sculptures. In the final section of their class, they study periods and movements such as pop art, surrealism, Dadaism and impressionism.

Their final project is a self-portrait that is a culmination of these things they have learned. The students must create a work of art that is original and takes a minimum of 20 hours to create. Some of the portraits used acrylic paint; some used charcoal. Student Helen Boland created a colorful tribute to pop art. Using acrylic paint, Boland assembled a close-up of her face from a series of quarter-inch dots against a white background.

Student Deanna Marshal used a baroque style where the person is overwhelmed by the darker and barren setting. She included green paint on her arms and hair, representing an account of what she looks like when she paints. She also included her cats in the periphery.

“This is my favorite part of the semester,” Crownfield said. “Many of the students have never created art before. They find it meditative.”

During the last class of the semester, they display their portraits while discussing the media they used and discussing how it represents them.

“I tell them that they will have a chance to display their work,” Crownfield said, flipping through the portraits while explaining how they expressed their personalities and individuality of each student. “I hope to motivate them to do their best.”