Today, 42Fifty published the first issue of its new literary magazine, The Muse, highlighting OH student artwork and creative writing. In our world of short attention spans, rapid-fire entertainment, and the flood of AI-generated content, it is more important than ever for high school students to slow down and appreciate their peers’ creativity.
“I think with the Fine Arts, it invites you to come and … slow things down and just ponder… I remember my art teacher in college told me that the average dealer in an art museum sees works only for three seconds. So, I mean, this is a lot about our attention span, and so our art has a way of being meditative and [taking a] moment to enjoy how much hard work went into it,” OH Fine Arts Department Chair Michael Skura said.
Now more than ever, emphasizing the value of student art and writing is important.
“With the rise of AI, we have a drop in independent, creative thinking,” OH Creative Writing teacher Erin Holtz said. “Creative thinking is not only where problem-solving comes from, [but also allows for] essential communication and empathy with others.”
Art and literature are intrinsically linked to culture. Movies play on tropes from books, songs are a form of poetry, and graphic design is everywhere. However, in many cases, high schools, especially in the arts, aren’t given as much recognition or active appreciation as other activities like sports.
“To recognize writing is a challenge because it’s not something that hundreds and thousands of people gather to watch or huddle in front of their television to cheer on their teams [like sports],” Holtz said.
The Muse’s core goal is to bring this recognition to both creative writing and visual fine arts, making it easier to find and celebrate.
Making art or writing creatively allows people to express themselves, understand other perspectives and feelings, and participate in culture in an intentional, meaningful way. Even for those not interested in creating art or writing, being involved in culture is important.
“[The arts are] the outward sign of one’s culture, and they embody what was significant and the legacy of that culture,” Skura said.
See the first issue here, or in The Muse tab under Entertainment.
I'm Taylor Jo Ana, I'm a Junior at OH, and this is my first year on 42Fifty! I'm on the Speech Team, and I'm in the National English Honor Society and National Art Honor Society. You can contact me by emailing 42Fifty@sd308.org and putting my name in the subject line. We welcome comments on our articles and feedback on our publication!
