Thomas Martin’s artistic flair shines in his winning entry for the Ramona H.E.A.R.T. Mural Project’s first student mural contest.
The artwork that earned Thomas a first-place award is a vibrant, anime-style perspective of the Cleveland National Forest. Through this mural, the 12-year-old hopes to inspire his community to explore and appreciate the “amazing” Ramona trails with friends and family, contest organizers said.
“I tried to recreate the mountains in Ramona and around my house,” said the Olive Peirce Middle School seventh-grader.
Courtesy Thomas Martin
Olive Peirce Middle School seventh-grader Thomas Martin created a vibrant scene of the Cleveland National Forest for his winning Ramona H.E.A.R.T. Mural Project contest entry. (Courtesy Thomas Martin)
Thomas and other Ramona students were invited to compete for an opportunity to create a mural that will be displayed in downtown Ramona.
The juried winners of the contest will be mentored by mural artist Helen Wilson. The Ramona H.E.A.R.T. Mural Project will supply the young artists with all the materials needed to finish their murals.
“I’m excited about how big it’s going to be,” Thomas said about his mural. “It might be more difficult (than traditional paintings), but hopefully I’ll learn a lot through it.”
The second place award went to two artists who collaborated on one piece that depicts a barn owl — Phoenix Nelson and her close friend Tayler Brown, who are both 17-year-old juniors at Ramona High School.
Courtesy Phoenix Nelson
Ramona High School juniors Phoenix Nelson and Tayler Brown created an owl piece of art that was inspired by the Ramona Barn Owls clothing brand. (Courtesy Phoenix Nelson)
Sketched with pencils before being painted with acrylic paint on canvas, the piece is intended to reflect the Ramona community’s connection to the outdoors and nature, Phoenix said.
“This project will contribute to the passions that Ramona residents share,” she said. “I think it will add a lot to Ramona. I love the crossover the community has with nature. It’s absolutely stunning.”
The third place winner is Maya Calvillo, an 18-year-old senior at Ramona High. Her colored pencil drawing shows a woman and her daughter buying produce at a farmers market. Maya said she patterned her design, which is intended to reflect warmth and a sense of peace, after the Sunday farmers market held near La Cocina Mexican restaurant in Ramona.
“I was surprised about winning,” said Maya, who is eager to transfer her image into a large-scale piece of public art. “I was excited to have the opportunity to have something in Ramona that I created.”
Courtesy Maya Calvillo
Maya Calvillo, an 18-year-old senior at Ramona High, created a colored pencil drawing that shows a woman and her daughter buying produce at a farmers market. (Courtesy Maya Calvillo)
The inaugural student art contest was coordinated by Molly Begent, owner of 2Create Gallery art gallery at 438 Main St. in Ramona.
Begent said the winning artists were chosen for their technical skills and thoughtfulness of designs.
“Each one had a different technique and interesting idea,” Begent said. “They were chosen for their abilities and ideas behind why they drew what they drew.”
Thomas said he was inspired to create his scene of the Cleveland National Forest by walking his dog on trails near his home in San Diego Country Estates that borders the forest. In his painting, the flowers pop with anime-style color.
“I added orange around the top of the mountains because the sunset makes the mountains around my house glow an orange color,” he said. “I’ve always loved to do art and I thought it would be cool for my art to be displayed for everyone.”
Courtesy Thomas Martin
Thomas Martin is shown hiking a trail with his little brother, Benjamin, and his rescue dog, Konan, who is named after an anime character. (Courtesy Thomas Martin)
The aspiring professional artist said he mostly learned art skills on his own but is taking an art class at Olive Peirce this year. He’s learning about techniques, different types of arts and mediums, he said.
Thomas has a goal to be an illustrator for books with a focus on Japanese and anime styles. He practices by drawing or painting pieces of art for his friends, some of whom are teammates on the DB9 Redbirds travel baseball team or teammates on the Ramona Swim Team.
His mom, Jennifer Martin, describes her son as “supersmart.” He maintains a 4.0 grade point average and just won a Student of the Month award, she said.
“He works hard,” Martin said, adding that some of his pieces have been showcased at his church’s talent fair. “If he’s at home he’s usually at the art table. He’s teaching himself Japanese so when he goes to the Asian grocery store he can talk to the clerks. He has a goal to one day work in the Japanese anime world.”
Thomas said he’s looking forward to having Wilson mentor him in creating a mural on a building, possibly as large as 6-feet-by-6-feet.
“I feel like that will be amazing,” he said. “I haven’t done art that way before.”
Phoenix said she and Tayler were inspired to create the owl for their contest entry because Tayler has experience working with the birds at Ramona Barn Owls.
Tayler’s job mainly involves taking inventory and shipping clothes and other owl-related merchandise.
Both Tayler and Phoenix said they were surprised at their second place win because neither has focused on developing their artist talents. But like Thomas, they are both high achievers. Phoenix has a 4.6 GPA and is a sprinter for the school’s track and field team as well as tennis captain for girls varsity tennis; Tayler has a 4.3 GPA and plays varsity volleyball as well as being a distance runner for the track and field team.
Phoenix said she’s excited about learning about the world of art while getting professional feedback on her mural project.
“The information will be valuable and it will be a life-changing experience,” said Phoenix, who is also enrolled in the engineering Career Technical Education pathway and has an interest in culinary arts and pursuing restaurant management as a career.
Maya said she’s always been interested in art as a hobby and once competed regionally in a Boys & Girls Club art contest.
Courtesy Maya Calvillo
Maya Calvillo, an 18-year-old senior at Ramona High, created a colored pencil drawing that shows a woman and her daughter buying produce at a farmers market. (Courtesy Maya Calvillo)
“Since I was a little kid I’ve been interested in doing art,” she said. “I went on YouTube and looked up how to draw. This year I’m taking Drawing and Painting 1 for fun.
“I want to continue learning about art in college,” added the future Grossmont College student who plans to study supply team management. “This contest is an inspiration to pursue more art.”
Now that the artists have completed their conceptual designs, the next step will be identifying exterior walls in Old Town Ramona where their art can be painted on panels.
Afterward, the Ramona H.E.A.R.T. Mural Project will seek approval from the Ramona Design Review Board. One of the final steps is purchasing the mural panels and art supplies.
After the artworks are installed, the Ramona H.E.A.R.T. Mural Project will celebrate the student artists and their murals with a public dedication ceremony.
To donate to the student art mural project, visit ramonamurals.com/the-vision/donate/.