2021 MAEA Recognitions Exhibit

Art for All Award
Organization or School Affiliation: Pentucket Regional Middle and High School

Student Name: Timothy Friend
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: The puppet character that I have created and designed is a very sophisticated vulture named Lord Ballard. He eats only the finest foods (no roadkill for him), sleeps in the finest nests and wears a comb over which he thinks makes him look very sophisticated. Lord Ballard wears a monocle that is attached by magnets, it is removable. I was guided and inspired by the tutorials of Adam Kreutinger.

Worcester Art Museum Voucher for Teen Class (Online or In-Person)
Organization or School Affiliation: Manchester Essex Regional High School

Student Name: Arabella Cox-Stavros
Grade: Grade 10
Artist Statement: The character in the middle, Seanchaí, is a Gaelic storyteller. Each of his hairs holds a moment in time. The word seanchaí means “bearer of old lore.” I am greatly inspired by Irish mythology and wanted to depict my own interpretation in this piece.

Davis Publications Media Category Award:Fashion
Organization or School Affiliation: Manchester Essex Regional High School

Student Name: Eva Parker
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: This dress is a piece on the way social media affects women and their mental health. The dress is made of red roses which are a known symbol of love, and the roses slowly wither out to a darker red or black. Black roses symbolize death and grief. The roses on this dress are a representation of one's self love deteriorating through comparison to others on social media.

MAEA Art Educator Award
Organization or School Affiliation: Weston Public Schools

Student Name: Serena Ng
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: My "Elemental" cosmetics company branding campaign takes inspiration from science, chemistry, and the periodic table to reflect the gold, copper, and silver variations that the sparkled lotions come in. The “E” in the logo is designed to look like the measurement marks on the side of a beaker, while the lotion bottles are labeled using the same abbreviations found on the periodic table.

Davis Publications Media Category Award:Photography
Organization or School Affiliation: Wellesley Public Schools, Wellesley High School

Student Name: Isabael McKay
Grade: Grade 9
Artist Statement: This photo was taken with a Pentax K-1000 film camera, and printed in a darkroom.

Davis Publications Media Category Award:Digital/Graphic Design
Organization or School Affiliation: Groton-Dunstable Regional High School

Student Name: Harrison Nguyen
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: My piece “Balance” was inspired by the themes of Avatar: The Last Airbender, a cartoon which focuses on the harmony between the four elements of water, earth, fire and air. The style of this piece was influenced by Ukiyo-e, a genre of Japanese paintings popular until the 19th century. The fire and water tiles share the same silhouette and perfectly dovetail, creating an equilibrium of the forces.

Davis Publications Media Category Award:Printmaking
Organization or School Affiliation: Falmouth High School

Student Name: Ava Norris
Grade: Grade 11
Artist Statement: This snow fence is on the sand dunes of Bristol Beach. Bristol is my favorite beach to visit to watch the sunset, watch Martha's Vineyard light up at night, and just sketch the dunes. The snow fence appears in the fall after the tourists have left, making it a staple for locals and winter visitors.

Organization or School Affiliation: GLOBAL ART ACADEMY by Meghartz

Student Name: Meghana Basi
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: For me, art making is after all an invention, but intending to reduce expectations and not focus on the outcomes so much. The outcomes are unpredictable, but that’s when you know, you are on the right track. I don’t keep a count of what type of materials in particular I gather whatever is around me, it’s almost as though it is meant for me to see it at that moment.

Organization or School Affiliation: Silver Lake Regional High School

Student Name: Kira Rancourt
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: This is my interpretation of the serious impact deforestation has on the world. I used pencil because I wanted the work colorless, giving it a dark serious tone. The factory is the main focus, victoriously sitting atop the tree stump surrounded by a fallen forest, showing what takes the place of trees after they are cut down. I want my drawing to accurately portray this serious problem and spread

Organization or School Affiliation: Silver Lake Regional High School

Student Name: Derick Wilson
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: My piece, inspired by Louise Nevelson's work with abstract sculptures, focuses on the light and dark forces in nature and how they collide with each other to create a balance that is necessary for reality to exist.

Organization or School Affiliation: Silver Lake Regional High School

Student Name: Sarah Anderson
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: A portrait of a friend painted with oil paints on canvas. The concept of this piece is derived from the current issues faced by the LGBTQ community. Though seemingly indirect, it represents the personal struggles of a transgender teen and how far he has come to be himself. The bright colors symbolize LGBTQ pride while the dark background shows the deep emotions and issues that surround him.

Organization or School Affiliation: Medfield High School

Student Name: Emery Swirbalus
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: Run Rabbit is a conceptual self-portrait inspired by the dynamic of prey & predator in the wild. Although I present as the stronger role, I actually identify with the lesser position of the prey; or in this case the rabbit disguised as confidant & aggressive.

Organization or School Affiliation: Medfield High School

Student Name: Grace O'Donnell
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: This portrait blurs the line between religion & commercial culture by elevating fashion icons as false idols.

Organization or School Affiliation: Medfield High School

Student Name: Nigel Lau
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: Emotions may be compared to drugs in that they change the physiology or psychology of an individual. This piece visually explores the emotional effects of adolescence.

Organization or School Affiliation: Medfield High School

Student Name: Avery Ayer
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: This drawing represents a trail I often walk in my hometown. By illustrating it, I hope to share a feeling of warmth, comfort, & nostalgia that others may feel about a significant place in their own lives.

Organization or School Affiliation: Weston high school

Student Name: Eunice Lee
Grade: Grade 11
Artist Statement: Every year, thousands of animals are tortured and killed due to cosmetic testing. Purchasing and using such products only supports further animal testing. Thus, I painted someone using a wounded rabbit's blood as makeup in order to shed light on the cruelty that animals are subjected to during the creation of many seemingly harmless beauty products.

Organization or School Affiliation: Somerville High School, Somerville, MA

Student Name: Tyler Gaffney
Grade: Grade 12
Artist Statement: "Oftentimes, when I read books, the images that appear in my mind are so vivid that I desperately want to illustrate them digitally. In this drawing, I set out to depict a scene from The Picture of Dorian Gray, which was written in 1890 by Oscar Wilde, from chapter 2, when Dorian is coming to grips with the fact that his youth won't last forever.

Organization or School Affiliation: Somerville High School, Somerville, MA

Student Name: Stephka Lubin
Grade: Grade 11
Artist Statement: The human body as it interacts and intertwines with nature’s plant life is a masterful and alluring image as the two lives, dug from and roaming the earth, live aside each other in peace over destruction. This concept of one human individuals’ interaction with organisms of earth has been done before, this piece heavily implies upon the shape of the body.

Organization or School Affiliation: Somerville High School, Somerville, MA

Student Name: Gabriel Fagundes
Grade: Grade 11
Artist Statement: The art piece created was a test where I could attempt to apply and experiment with some new skills. The skills being; the ability to draw people or figures from different perspectives and angles that are unexplored territory and out of my comfort zone. Since this artwork is a result of exploring the unknown limits of my skills. Hence why I decided to make the piece about space exploration.

Organization or School Affiliation: Milton Public Schools

Student Name: Rose Gillooly
Grade: Grade 11
Artist Statement: I really love painting people, and I found an interesting black and white photograph in a magazine that I used as a reference. I was drawn to the unique positions of the jazz players. I tried to recreate the movement and fluidity of the scene in my painting. I play flute in my high school band and could feel the energy from my past experiences before a concert.