Alief ISD’s Elsik High School students earned top honors at the 2025 Houston Art Car Parade, a city-wide celebration of mobile creativity and one of Houston’s most iconic cultural events. Among more than 250 imaginative entries, Elsik’s vibrant art car stood out not only for its design, but for the story behind it.
The Houston Art Car Parade is the world’s largest celebration of art cars and the city’s biggest free public art event. Presented by Team Gillman and powered by the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art, the parade attracts more than 250 entries from 23 states, as well as Canada and Mexico. Over 300,000 spectators gather each year to see an unforgettable display of creativity, featuring everything from radically modified vehicles to moving sculptures. Participants include students, professional artists, and community groups, all driven by a shared mission to transform ordinary automobiles into works of art.
Art cars begin as everyday vehicles, cars, trucks, buses, golf carts, and are transformed through artistic expression. Some artists use temporary materials like paper or tape, while others completely rework the vehicle’s structure to create something entirely new. The results are bold, surreal, humorous, and often deeply personal. The Orange Show awards over $15,000 in prizes each year, judged by a panel of experts across the fields of art, education, and automotive design.
For Elsik students, this project was a six-month journey of collaboration, creativity, and cultural pride. Led by art teacher Cavan Leerkamp, nearly 50 students from four classes contributed to the design and construction, which reflected the school’s global diversity. The art car featured patterns and symbols from countries including Ethiopia, Honduras, and China, with students incorporating personal heritage into the final piece.
The process involved sculpture-building, papier-mâché, painting, and glossing. It was all accomplished through teamwork during class, after school, and even during lunch breaks. Despite creative differences along the way, students utilizing communication and a shared vision to bring their work to life.
When the results were announced, everyone was excited. Elsik High School had earned one of the top honors among more than 30 participating schools and youth organizations. On parade day, students proudly walked beside their creation in downtown Houston, cheered on by the community.
The project was more than just about art. As student Jena Gómez shared, “Even if you think you’re not good at art, you can still be part of something amazing.”
The Orange Show Center for Visionary Art, the nonprofit behind the parade, also maintains the Orange Show Monument, the Beer Can House, and Smither Park. They are three of Houston’s most loved visionary art spaces. Through programs like the Art Car Parade, the organization brings art into classrooms and communities, offering artist-led workshops, murals, and youth programs, with a focus on serving at-risk students.
Elsik’s achievement stands as a reminder of what students can accomplish when creativity and community come together and of the lasting impact public art can have.
Sources: Alief ISD Instagram, Houston Art Car Parade Website, Alief ISD Website
Blog by: Diana Xiao
