SAN ANTONIO — Art students at Edison High School took up the challenge to show off their hometown pride in the Vans Custom Culture contest.
However, translating that onto kicks, while in the thick of a pandemic and winter storm, did not come easy.
"We had a lot of students who were working virtually but also on campus and we were trying to figure out ways to engage them and get them to come to class so this was the perfect project," Edison High School, Art Teacher, Kimberly Garza said.
Five teams tackled the project by using paint, stich work, paper and even clay to design their sneakers.
"They wanted to highlight our fiesta celebrations, our happy times, our bright times when we have come together," Garza said. "They brought that out with their colors, with their designs, and their positive attitudes and I think that really captured our community."
Standing out amongst the rest with their 'Puro San Antonio' and 'Concha Bakery on Wheels' themes.
"It's like everyone's favorite thing to eat in the morning; have some sweet bread with some milk and coffee and whatever you guys like to drink," Edison High School senior Amanda Solorzano said. "That's my culture that I've grown up with."
The contest bringing these students together during a time when everything worked to keep them apart.
"It was really exciting because it was our first year and we went a long way," Edison High School, senior, Daymirka Wong said.
Senior, Amanda Solorzano adding, "I'm leaving something behind knowing that I am part of something this big and its going back to something I love, which is art."
Walking a path of development and discovery together, to learn, they are the designers of their future.
"It's all by these students that were able to come together in the worst most difficult challenging times and they were still able to do it," Garza said. "That's really inspirational and we are really proud that they did."
These ten students, some of them seniors, leaving their legacy behind in the form of a $15,000 prize that will give back to this art program for years to come.
"Its shown me a lot and I've grown a lot with this especially with my amazing art teachers," Solorzano said. "This program helped me express myself creatively it gave me an outlet, and it gives a lot of us outlets, because sometimes we don't have the best situations at home...and what better way to express yourself than through art."
Edison High School's art program has been pushing the district to build them new art studios, and while this has been in the works for a while, the $15,000 prize will help to furnish those new studios.