Moments before the bell after first hour rings, senior Gracie Puckett heads straight towards the art room, sets her bag down, uncovers her canvas and starts to paint. Puckett’s artistic journey began with drawings and sketches for as long ago as she could remember. However, when she received acrylic paint for the first time, she said her talent for painting developed immensely. 

 “I kept [painting] and I spent a lot of time on it,” Puckett said. “I developed my personal techniques like [how to] clean my brushes, what brushes to use and how to blend things. [I] figured out what I like to see on a canvas.”

Puckett has been a part of the PHS art program for the last four years, and she utilizes her time in art class mostly for personal improvement.

“This painting class isn’t teaching me anything,” Puckett says. “It’s a creative studio class where I sit and I do whatever I want.”     

The art gallery above consists of Puckett’s portraits and works of people. She paints her favorite aspects of the human body and adds her own touch to the painting.

 “I personally think the human body and physique is so pretty,” Puckett says. “I like to put color in it. I like to put some sort of splash and a sense of randomness to it.”

Painting is a hobby for Puckett, but she also describes it as a stress reliever from her daily school work. 

“Focusing on things that I don’t like is so exhausting to me because I’m spending my time on something that I don’t care about,” Puckett says. “It really stresses me out. But when I’m able to paint, regardless of what it is that I’m painting it, it just lets all that out. I can calm down [by] blending all the colors and getting certain facial features or the shading just right.”

After giving her mind a break by spending time with her canvas and brushes, Puckett is “pumped up” and is “ready to tackle” whatever school work she was doing before.  

Puckett has been selling her artwork and encourages people to reach out to her if they are interested. She likes to see others observe and admire her work and wants to help others who are looking to improve their painting skills. 

“It [is] really awesome [to see that] people are excited about something I did and something that I love,” Puckett said. “Let me know if you’re painting, and you just can’t figure out. I love helping people, especially when it comes to art because that is my passion. People who want to be passionate about it just need a little push, and I can do that.”