On Oct. 21 the Museum of Photographic Arts (MOPA) located in Balboa Park opened the stage to its annual Juried Youth exhibition that will be on display until April 21, 2024. The prestigious contest featured 76 artworks out of the 701 submissions from a large range of students in terms of the style of art, schools and ages.
Of the 76 chosen artworks, two were showcased to represent Bonita Vista High from 2023 graduate Jasmine Montes Cuevas and senior Diego Graciano. In order to be showcased, the students’ art would reflect MOPA’s theme; Exploration. Moreover, Graciano’s chosen piece explored a three-photo series understanding the value of family and being titled “Mi Familia”—My family.
“With this piece [I faced] a few challenges in getting pictures of the nature I wanted [to include] because there are only so many photos that I actually liked that would work with the pictures of my family and cultural [representation],” Graciano said.
Graciano was not alone through the process with the support of his family and Photography, Advanced Placement (AP) 2D art and design teacher, Edwin Lim. He has a history of working with successful artistic students and entering them in numerous competitions. Lim expresses his pride in his students’ accomplishments and experiences with meeting students’ families at events like the MOPA exhibit.
“I am on the moon [at these events]. The whole point of being a teacher is to see your kids excel to create incredible photography good enough for a museum. That is the pinnacle of my teaching,” Lim said. “I met Diego’s parents, [there were] big smiles on their faces when they left home. That is what education is about, helping kids excel.”
Diego’s mother, Ieanai Graciano, attended the opening ceremony and exhibition alongside Diego’s father, Manuel Graciano to celebrate and support D. Graciano’s piece. I. Graciano describes her perspective on D. Graciano’s artistic journey while sharing her thoughts on the opportunities it offered him.
“Diego doubted himself a little bit on some of the nature pictures he took. He asked everybody at home for our opinions and [tried] figuring out which background he can use for his pictures. It was nice how he engaged his family in his presentation,” I. Graciano said.
Moreover, throughout the process of creating his piece, D. Graciano was also able to reflect on the importance of his family’s culture and values. Furthermore, I. Graciano notes how she emphasizes the value of culture and reflects that in how she involves D. Graciano.
“I often speak to [D. Graciano and his brother] about their heritage, their roots—Mexican. There is so much to share about our country and our culture. We go down [to Mexico] pretty regularly, I love for them to see our country, I was born there,” I. Graciano said. “They see my country, where [our family] came from and where we hold our traditions.”
In accordance with the name Mi Familia, D. Graciano’s piece features himself, his brother and M. Graciano. M. Graciano explains the number of opportunities the MOPA contest has already offered D. Graciano and how it will reflect in his future for the better.
“Diego has always been an out of the box thinker with everything, it is his own creativity. I am still in shock [on his recognition at MOPA], it is cool to see when your kids are involved in some activity like this. It is a cultural shock. I hope it gives him another avenue of some future options or with what he wants to do,” M. Graciano said.
I. Graciano encourages students to further expand their photography skills and experience something like the MOPA exhibition. As Lim prepares his current photography to enter the contest, he highlights the connection between contest-worthy photos and the AP test.
“I have been religiously coming to the exhibitions watching students from San Diego County, this is real education. This is my laboratory. If I am the true flow teacher, I should be able to teach my students to create fantastic art and find their creative photography,” Lim said. “That is how I tailor my curriculum. The good thing is, if students are able to create art good enough for MOPA, it also correlates to the AP exams so it is a direct correlation to create great art [and use it] for the AP exam.”
Moreover, Lim describes how he strongly supports students’ abilities and pushes for their art to be recognized in a number of contests. He mentions obstacles he has faced over the years and how he looks to encourage students as artists.
“[A few years ago] I was unable to get anything to enter MOPA, but that is part of life. You persevere, you do not quit, you study to be more creative, eventually become successful and calm. [That is] my metaphor for life [and] for students. Once you get into a contest, you do not quit, [because] you are still a brilliant artist,” Lim said.
