The Vincent Smith School lobby was transformed into a gallery of creativity and expression Wednesday evening, as students from grades 1-12 displayed their artwork at the school’s annual art fair.
The annual event is both a showcase and a judged competition that includes prizes awarded this year by professional artist Dawn Herlihy Reilly.
Art teacher Lauren Bourguet chose the theme, “The Fundamentals of Subject Matter,” to encapsulate four subject matters: portraits, landscapes, still lives, and abstracts.
The students were proud to share their artwork with their peers, parents, teachers, and visitors. Some of them explained the inspiration and meaning behind their creations, which were the results of specific themes the students explored during the school year.
Artist Alma Thomas, the first black woman to have her art featured in the White House Collection, was the inspiration for the mosaic abstracts, where the students painted a watercolor base then created a second overlay with tempera.
In other works, the students used an unconventional tool—a marble—to create non-objective art inspired by Wassily Kandisky.
For the theme, “Paint Brush Still Life,” students delved into the work of contemporary artist Jim Dine. They noted the relationship between light and shadow, using pencil pressures and smudging to create delicate shadows.
A favorite exhibit was the wall of dinosaurs inspired by Jean-Michel Basquiat’s “Pez Dispenser.”
Students used newspapers, paint, oil pastels, and crayons to create their striking and thought-provoking canvas poetry. The visitors were impressed by the variety and quality of the artwork.
The highlight of the event was the awards ceremony, where the best artworks from the Lower and Upper schools were recognized and rewarded.
Judge Dawn Herlihy Reilly awarded first place for the Upper School to Olivia Lam for her landscape and First Place for the Lower School to Massimo Bica for his King Dinosaur.
Dawn Reilly is an award-winning photographer whose work has been shown at numerous art festivals and museums like the Long Island Photo Gallery, Long Island Museum, Pierro Gallery, and private collections.
As the Head of School John Baldi noted, “The school art fair is an annual favorite for families and students. We’re very proud of all of them, and we’re especially grateful to our art teacher, Ms. Bourguet, who inspires them to develop their artistic potential and to delve more deeply into the meaning and complexity of the artwork they study. Her hard work and effort have certainly paid off in a wonderful display of our students’ creativity.”
