Marblehead students reveal their artistic talents as the annual Spring Art Exhibit opens today and runs through May 27 in Abbot Hall, 188 Washington St. The show features nearly 500 works by seventh through 12th graders.
A longstanding and cherished tradition, the spring art show includes various art forms including drawings, paintings, sculptures, woodworking, photography and computer-aided design renderings.
“A lot of the work is from over the course of the past few years,” said Marblehead senior James Pulido, who is helping to run the exhibit. “We took a long time to figure out what was the student’s best work to go in here, and I think we created a really good selection.”
According to Pulido, only in the last four years have they begun to include artwork from other grade levels. One highlight of the exhibit featured work by a number of seventh graders. Part of an art class assignment, each student was instructed to design a backpack that would solve a specific problem.
Some stand out designs include “The Commuter” by Ronan Lewis, whose backpack has a water resistant bottom and USB-C plug. Another bag designed by Rileigh Parker features a side strap for storing a skateboard.
Lucy Bland, a Marblehead senior, contributed nine pieces overall to the exhibit, including 4’ x 6’ oil painting “The Trickster I,” which is her largest piece to date.
“I like to explore nostalgia in my work and the way it influences the past and future,” said Bland. “A lot of my work is about growing up, which can be seen through the toys that are present in most of my paintings.”
Of her work on “The Trickster” I and II, Bland said, “The ‘Trickster’ paintings are inspired by Kehinde Wiley and tell the story of the Trickster, a figure from folk tales who pushes boundaries and causes trouble.” Bland is set to major in painting at Virginia Commonwealth University this fall.
Other students also brought a range of personal inspiration to their work. Notable pieces include photography by juniors Grey Collins (who is also a Current intern) and Zach Pike and seniors Maxine Hall and Charlie Rozsell, sculpture by freshman Ruby Assa, oil paintings by senior Edie May and a mixed media collage by senior Gabbrielle Hendy.
“I knew I wanted to make a collage this year, because I had made one last year, and wanted to expand on that skill,” said Hendy. “I was inspired by mosaic style glass pieces for the background, so I cut out the pieces of paper to resemble a swirl you’d find on a glass mosaic.” Hendy says her work was inspired by the song “Space Oddity” by David Bowie.
