![\"Hannah](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1775112314_467_Web-Photo-34-1024x683.png\")
Hannah Allen (left) and Jessica Griggs (right) were named this year’s spotlight artists for the Apopka Art & Foliage Festival.<\/p>\nHannah Allen (left) and Jessica Griggs (right) were named this year’s spotlight artists for the Apopka Art & Foliage Festival.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of Pamela Groseclose<\/p>\n
The Apopka Art & Foliage Festival announced this year\u2019s spotlight artists\u00a0on Monday, recognizing Hannah Allen and Jessica Griggs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Allen,\u00a0this year\u2019s fine art spotlight artist, draws colored pencil artwork and previously won an award of honor at the 2024 festival. Allen started drawing at age 7 and eventually found a mentor in The Art Studio of Lake Mary\u2019s Stella\u00a0Tagliavore.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cStella mentored Hannah as she developed a realist style that captured not just the appearance of her subjects\u00a0\u2014\u00a0marine life, birds, wildlife, and beloved pets\u00a0\u2014\u00a0but their presence: the glint in an eye, the iridescence of a feather, the luminous stillness of an underwater scene,\u201d\u00a0a press release said.\u00a0\u201cHannah\u2019s main focus is to\u00a0capture every detail to highlight the personality of each animal, especially through the eyes.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Allen\u00a0donates\u00a0her work to the Central Florida Zoo\u00a0& Botanical Gardens and to the annual Ali\u2019s Hope Foundation fundraiser. She has also received awards from the Cocoa Village Spring Fine Art & Craft Fair, the New Smyrna Beach Art\u00a0Fiesta\u00a0and the DeLand Outdoor Art Festival.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The festival also named Griggs as this year\u2019s creative craft spotlight artist.\u00a0She\u00a0paints watercolors of the natural world and\u00a0currently works as a principal and director of operations at\u00a0Dix.Hite\u00a0+ Partners, a landscape architecture firm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI love the unexpected in nature: the subtle color changes that many people overlook, and the small seasonal changes that are constantly taking place,\u201d she said in her press release. \u201cI like to take these subtleties, enlarge them to a size that causes people to pause, and engage every viewer in a way that helps them appreciate the little joys in life.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Griggs credits her memories from her home state of Ohio, plants growing in her backyard, and native plants as key sources of inspiration for her pieces.\u00a0She also\u00a0received an award of honor at last year\u2019s festival<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n