Ole Miss students and local artists display multiple forms or art

OXFORD, Miss. (WCBI)- Art can be displayed in several ways from a picture, canvas, or a performance.  In Oxford, one Ole miss student wanted to focus on just that and bring some life to his local community.

Getting people to understand the concept of art can be difficult, but for those creating the masterpiece, it’s second nature to them. Ole Miss students and local artists gathered Saturday to showcase their artistic ability in the Art 2 Me Showcase.

“I love art and I like to express myself through my artwork and just everything that I do,” said artist Breanna Magee.

“Art is really about an expression of yourself and it’s a way for you to really let a lot off of your chest or just you know have fun I think art is really about having fun and being yourself and being who you are,” said artist Kae Bellamy.

“People really get to know you through your art and I chose to do it through music so that’s how I express myself and people can see how I am on the inside if they don’t really know me,” said artist Justin Ivy.

The Art 2 Me showcase displayed talents from artists; some of those creations were on canvas, while others took to the stage.

“We have 15 art vendors that will have like actual tables to present like physical art and sell it and then we have 8 musical performers,” said event coordinator and Ole Miss graduate student Jeffery Patton.

Patton said preparing took months, but thanks to eased restrictions he and other participants were able to get the event underway.

“The reason we did it outside is that we didn’t know how well we could pull off something like this inside so we wanted to make sure that people had enough space to do what they wanted to do and stay safe above all so with the ease it has gotten a lot easier to host the event so I’m thankful that that happened and eager to see what’s going to happen in the future,” said Patton.

What started as an idea in January has unfolded into the showcase, and Patton also featured a group to display their skills.

“Specifically with the art 2 me showcase I wanted to showcase black artists because being black in Mississippi it’s really hard to get that acknowledgment and recognition as well so I wanted to create a showcase and a platform for people to get that time to shine and show what they can contribute to the art community,” said Patton.

Patton feels the event will bring light to local artists and encourages anyone who loves art to build a platform and use it to the best of their ability.