Art is more than an extracurricular offering or creative outlet at Georgia-Cumberland Academy (GCA). It’s an intentional component of the academic program designed to help students discover their God-given gifts. Through this program, students are not only learning how to create; they are learning how to steward their talents in ways that reflect Christ and serve others.
Each year students in the art program are given the space, instruction, and resources to creatively express their ideas, emotions, and faith in ways that words alone cannot capture. As students conceptualize and complete original works, they learn to take ownership of the creative process, make intentional choices, and see projects through from idea to execution. These experiences cultivate responsibility and confidence — key qualities of strong, creative leaders.
This fall, Lauren Anderson, GCA art instructor, presented the student body at large with a unique opportunity from the Georgia Art Education Association to create and submit a piece of original artwork to feature in the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in celebration of the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup in Atlanta, Ga. Five GCA students jumped at the opportunity and worked in conjunction with Anderson to complete three pieces that were all accepted, and will be featured in the airport from February to September 2026.
“I love this type of project because the students receive real world experience. They learned time management and people skills as they worked together as a team to collectively come up with something and complete the project. These are invaluable skills for any profession,” said Anderson. “They were given the opportunity to use their God-given skills and abilities, and I loved watching the spark that they exhibited while working on their pieces. As a teacher, that’s the best.”
The students were assigned a city and/or country in which they were to highlight the culture and community, while paying homage to football. The GCA students worked on pieces featuring the city of Boston, Mass., and the countries of Sweden and Tunisia. The students conducted research, presented drafts, and critiqued each other’s ideas before creating their art pieces.
Sophia Juler, class of 2026, was one of the students involved in the project. “I’ve always loved art since I was a kid, and I plan to pursue it as a career, so I was immediately interested. My favorite aspect of art is coming up with a vision, and being able to create that and see it come together. This specific project really helped me develop discipline,” said Juler.
Another student who got involved in the project was Ariana Forrester, a senior at GCA. Forrester had grown up doing art with her dad and loved it, but due to the busyness of high school, she hadn’t pursued adding it as an extracurricular activity on top of her already full schedule with music and sports. However, her roommate encouraged her to explore her love of art once again, and she accepted the opportunity. “One of the things I learned from this project is that not everything will go perfectly, and that’s okay. You can’t be too hard on yourself. You have to keep going. And the beautiful thing is that in the end everything comes together, even if it wasn’t completely what you envisioned at the beginning,” said Forrester.
This achievement reflects not only artistic skill, but also the confidence and leadership fostered through GCA’s art program. Students are encouraged to develop original concepts, manage long-term projects, and engage critically with their own work. They learn to receive feedback, meet deadlines, and present their art professionally — essential leadership qualities in any field.
Georgia-Cumberland | March 2026
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