Snow couldn’t dampen the holiday spirits of the approximately two dozen Williamsburg-area high school students who competed in the second annual Grand Street Holiday Window Display Competition on Saturday, December 14. In fact, it may have actually heightened the festive atmosphere.
Neighbors, family, friends and shoppers voted for their favorite window designs and the results are now in: it was a tie between Sisto Pharmacy’s “Grand Aid” designed by Progress High School and Dr. Diogenes Almonte’s “New Snow City” designed by Williamsburg High School for Architecture and Design.
The two teams each received a $100 gift card to a local art store.
“So many windows received great compliments and high marks,” said Artineh Havan, executive director of the Grand Street Business Improvement Distric, which sponsored the event.
Students from four local schools—the Green School; High School for Enterprise, Business and Technology; Progress High School; and the High School for Architecture and Design—competed in the design competition, installing window displays at 12 businesses.
The teams of three to five students each spent the last few weeks planning their designs, which will greet customers of shops like Flores Del Valle, Sisto Pharmarcy, Nieves Latin Dance Studio, Lily Thai, Your Spoiled Pets, Pop-Up Artspace, Camporese Hardware, Bikesmith and more.
The fun neighborhood competition seeks to showcase student talents, foster connections between youth and small businesses, increase foot traffic on the local commercial strip, promote economic development in the community, and get students thinking about possible career opportunities.
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