Irvine placed more student finalists in the recently announced Orange County Register’s Artist of the Year 2023 than any other city.
The annual program recognizes top high school students in theater, dance, instrumental music, vocal music, film-and-TV, fine arts and media arts. A panel of arts teachers selected seven winners, with one from Irvine, and 29 finalists, with 14 from Irvine.
“The process of creating a work of art is meant to be a bit of a struggle and a learning curve, but if we can wait out the awkward stage and not let our self-doubt consume us, a wonderful creation may result,” says fine-arts finalist Melody Wu of Irvine.
This marks the 10th year of the OC Register’s Artist of the Year program. Judges chose finalists from 721 nominees based on applications, performance videos, art portfolios, film samples and artistic resumes. Nearly half of the finalists were from Irvine.
