Student Art Exhibition from Across the Region on Display in Battle Lake Through March 22

Art of the Lakes gallery in Battle Lake spent the past several weeks displaying roughly 90 to 100 qualifying student artworks as part of the Minnesota State High School League's regional high school art exhibition, with a closing reception scheduled for today, March 22, marking the final public opportunity to view the show.

The exhibition, organized through the MSHSL, drew works from multiple high schools across the region and was on view at the gallery's 108 Lake Avenue location. Weekend hours during the run were Saturday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday noon to 4 p.m.

The MSHSL regional art program scores all submitted pieces through qualified visual arts judges using criteria that include imaginative content, skill and technique, and style. Students compete across a range of disciplines: drawing, painting, sculpture, media arts, crafts, digital and film photography, printmaking, ceramics, two-dimensional mixed media, and graphic design.

The Battle Lake exhibition is part of a broader circuit of MSHSL regional shows held annually at galleries across Minnesota. A separate regional show serving Region 6A North is scheduled to run April 9 through April 24, 2025, at the New York Mills Regional Cultural Center, where approximately 125 to 150 students and teachers are expected to gather on April 24 for a Student Art Festival that includes artist presentations and an awards ceremony. Admission to that gallery is free.

The MSHSL framework gives student artists the relatively rare experience of seeing their work displayed in a professional gallery setting alongside peers from competing schools, with judging conducted under standardized league rules.