By Claire Hong
Food, family and imagination are some of the themes that make up the artwork featured in the senior art show that opened on April 16. Seniors of Drawing and Painting III and AP Studio Art have been working on these pieces since Thanksgiving break, although some also include work from their junior or sophomore years.
Each student is required to choose a theme for his or her senior concentration, and the artwork they make during their senior year features this theme.
Sophiea Kim â12, who takes Drawing and Painting III, picked her family as the theme of her senior concentration. The focus should be related to the artistâs interests and values, she said.
“My senior concentration is âfood for power,â which uses food as a symbol of political power,” said Graham Cairns â12, who is in AP Studio Art. “I chose it because itâs fun and because I did a piece last year with waffles, and I enjoyed it, so I decided to keep doing that.”
Danny Roth â12, who is in AP Studio Art, wanted to focus on dreams for his senior concentration because he wanted to explore a topic that would allow him to use his imagination to its fullest, he said.
“[My favorite piece] is a very large, nightmarish piece,” he said. “It was the first time Iâd ever used a canvas that big. I wanted the size of the canvas and its message to have an incredibly strong impact on the viewer.”
Students are allowed to work in any medium, including acrylic and gouache paint and colored pencils.
To take AP Studio Art, students must complete a portfolio of 12 pieces before the start of senior year. Upper school visual arts teacher Marianne Hall will then look over the pieces to determine whether the student is ready to take the AP course. Another option is to finish the pieces by the end of first semester of senior year. Students taking Drawing and Painting III who wish to take AP Studio Art can place into the course for second semester.  Â
