Garland ISD recently announced that 13-year-old Emma Graves won the State Fair of Texas’ Creative Arts Face Mask Competition. Emma said that her art teacher at Austin Academy of Excellence, Jessica Thompson, told her class about the contest.
Emma had already been making face masks, so the competition was a perfect fit for her skills and interests. It was also appropriate for this year’s modified version of the fair due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Her design was inspired by Garland ISD’s Superintendent Dr. Ricardo Lopez’s wardrobe in a video she had seen. He had dressed like Big Tex to promote the district’s State Fair themed Intersession event.
She was the sole winner in the Texas Themed Face Mask category and was proud of her work. The young artist should be proud, as the mask features a likeness of Big Tex and a longhorn as well. It doesn’t get much more “Texas” than that.
The Austin Academy student favors two of her school subjects.
“Art and science are my favorite subjects. I love art because it allows me to express my creativity,” she said. “I also really enjoy science.”
She said that her family doesn’t attend the fair every year, but she missed having the opportunity to go this year. Emma did get to do something that most of us never get to do, though! She was recently interviewed for a television news segment where she talked about her Creative Arts win. She said it was kind of like talking to a friend since the interview was conducted on Zoom.
History of Big Tex
Highlights of the 1950s included an international livestock show, a new monorail system, a concert by Elvis Presley, and the appearance of a 52-foot cowboy on the grounds. Most folks know Big Tex as the symbol of the State Fair of Texas because he has had the job for many years. Before coming to Dallas in 1952, he played the role of another popular character in the small East Texas town of Kerens.
After WW II, Kerens’ merchants were looking for a way to get residents to shop for Christmas at local stores. They built what they claimed was the world’s largest Santa. It succeeded at first, but the novelty wore off and the Chamber of Commerce sold the Santa to fair officials for $750. After some “work” on his face and some new clothes, he became Big Tex.
Photos provided by Garland ISD.