Sam LaPell, a junior at Darrow School, has been named a first-place winner in the 21st Annual Juried Art Show at Columbia Greene Community College (CGCC) in Greenport, New York. [private]The competition is open to students from 14 area high schools, and awards a first, second, and third prize in addition to several honorable mentions.
The exhibition will be on display in the CGCC Arts Center’s Foundation Gallery through February 24.
Sam was named the first-place winner for his untitled work, a series of three-dimensional monochromatic acrylic paintings on cardboard, and received a $150 prize at the awards ceremony held at the college on January 26.
“Last year, a Darrow student won second place in the competition, and a few years ago we had a student who won an honorable mention,” said Liz Fougère, Chair of the Arts Department, “but this is the first time we’ve had a first place winner from Darrow.” Fougère noted that the work of another student, Connor ‘17, was selected by Darrow’s arts faculty for inclusion in the exhibition.
“The three paintings form a set, all done in acrylic paints, black and ivory white, on paper intended for charcoal,” Sam said. “The pieces are of landscapes based on my own photos of the currents I saw in Canada, a winter day, and a field around my house. They differ from my typical usage of graphite and pen, and I was interested in shifting mediums after becoming accustomed to charcoal, which, while still being a dry tool, is moved around and layered similar to paint. The three pieces were merely experiments that drew together aspects of dimensions, book making, drawing, and tiredness.”
“I’m incredibly proud of Sam’s accomplishment, as well as Connor’s for being selected by our Arts Department faculty to participate in the competition,” said Simon Holzapfel, Darrow’s Head of School. “This recognition truly speaks to the outstanding quality of the arts curriculum at Darrow.”[/private]