By Mia Alva and
Kennedy Zak
Outlook Valley Sun
Third grade student Caris Wee from Palm Crest Elementary has earned herself a spot in the 2024 Metropolitan Water District of Southern California’s annual “Being Water Wise Is …” Student Art Contest, which received 234 entries from MWD’s 26-member agencies across its six-county service area.
Wee’s work, which will be featured in the MWD’s calendar in the month of February, was inspired by what she was learning about snowmelt and how water flows into rivers in Grace Lee Choe’s second grade class last year.
“When she found out about the art contest and the theme about being water wise, she used that as her inspiration for her art piece,” said her father, Brian Wee.
The competition is open for students in kindergarten through 12th grade.
Caris Wee was an excellent student in her class and that the “artwork was all her doing,” Choe said.
“She works hard, puts a lot of thought and care into the projects that she participates in,” said Choe. “She is mindful and kind. All I did was speak about the opportunity on the flier that went home regarding the program. The rest was all Caris.”
The artwork initially took Caris Wee about four to five days, but when she finished, she noticed things she wanted to improve on, so she started all over again and the piece that won was her second attempt.
“Caris wanted to enter the competition, partly because it was so relevant to what she had been learning in class, but also because she wanted to try and improve her art skills and she was curious what it would be like to enter an art contest,” said Brian Wee.
The contest helped Caris Wee with her confidence in doing more artwork, said Brian Wee.
“She picked up drawing early and has an observant eye, noticing the littlest details, so much so that I nicknamed her ‘Eagle Eyes,’” said Brian Wee. “I would say she is more passionate about art, but I think being intentional about natural resources is something she is mindful of, as she often likes to tell me to not waste water and electricity.”
When Caris Wee found out about her spot in the calendar she was surprised and excited, and asked her father, “Do I get a copy of the calendar too?”
Not only did she receive a whole stack of calendars, but her artwork was also featured on some Water Wise postcards. She was also invited to the student artist recognition event during one of the water board Zoom meetings to speak about her piece. For her prize, she received an art supplies kit and a shower timer.
“She was struggling to figure out how to begin and what to draw, but she just started pulling in different references, things she learned from her school lessons about snowmelt, and some trees that she saw her brother do for an art project and thought were interesting, and even trying to incorporate a squirrel into the piece, since she was really into squirrels at the time,” said Brian Wee. “It was great to see her figure out to make things work, or not work, which is why she started over again the second time.”
Caris Wee’s current teacher, Tonya Mizrahi, said that she is an outstanding student.
“Caris is an amazing young person,” said Mizrahi. “Not only does she work hard, but she is also thoughtful. She is always happy, smiling and compassionate toward others. Her work is always neatly completed and her illustrations are beautiful.”
To view the digital version of the calendar, visit mwdh2o.com/media/tw3hwe3f/
student-art-calendar-2024.pdf.
First published in the January 25 print issue of the Outlook Valley Sun.
