Spotlight on the Arts: Ava Bouquet

“Spotlight on the Arts” by The Paradise Center honors and encourages students in the arts by highlighting their talent and acknowledging the support they receive through their schools and teachers.

“Breathtaking” is the only word for the artwork of Ava Bouquet. At 16 years of age and in the 10th grade, Bouquet demonstrates both talent and dedication when it comes to her art.  

Beginning in the 7th grade, with a short break until the 9th grade, Ava has been involved in art classes with her teacher, Ms. Mindy Leichtnam. Last year she focused on flowers. This year she is beginning to depict animals.

Although using bright colors for many of her flowers, using both oil pastels and chalk pastels, her favorite medium is charcoal. She captures intricate detail with black, white, and gray, an accomplishment not many artists can achieve. Her inspiration is her mother, who is an artist using a variety of mediums, but she prefers painting.

The dedication to her work is evident in the shading, composition, and attention to every element of her subject matter. Although she has a sketchbook, she prefers to spend more time on her work that a sketch involves. Bouquet may spend as much as three months on a single piece of work. She jokes that she only produced five pieces of art last year, but once you understand the time she spends on every one, that is a reasonable outcome.

In addition to her visual artworks, she also plays the trumpet. As for her short-term future, she is about to begin a piece depicting a bird, a very different subject than she has done in the past. For her long term-future, she plans to attend college with a major in engineering and a minor in art.

When asked what advice she would give someone just starting to develop an interest in art, she suggests that they try it, exploring different ways to illustrate whatever subject they choose.  She adds that it may take a lot of effort, but the reward is worth it.

With such evident talent and commitment, Bouquet has art as both a potential career path and/or as a hobby.  Either way, she will succeed.