For the month of April, high school students from Winkler, Morden, and Altona get to see their art hanging on the walls of the Morden art gallery.

Scott Bell, art teacher at Garden Valley Collegiate (GVC) says, "we've been doing this for a long time at this point, well over a decade . . . It's nice that it pulls in students from all over southern Manitoba."

He says the chance to have their work hung up professionally is a great privilege, and something students can be proud of.

"They get to collaborate in a way with students from other schools because we always decide on a central theme for the show, so all students are kind of beginning from the same point." This year's theme was 'Image.'

Where they go from there can range anywhere from photography, to drawing, and painting. Bell says there are even some large-scale sculptures which shows that the students are pushing their creative limits.

As well, the month-long exhibition allows students to be exposed to constructive critiques and complements that can help them improve their skills as they transition out of high school, but continue on with making art.

"Some of the students that have submitted work to these shows have gone on to study art in post-secondary situations and even make it their career, so it's nice that they're getting exposure to a bigger art world outside of the school," says Bell.

He adds that the teachers are grateful for continued community support for students who are learning about and creating art, and the opportunity to showcase that on a professional scale.