Grade: 12

Tools: “I love Sharpies. I have to have Sharpies. They’re probably my favorite thing to use. I don’t get too specific, though. It changes a lot. I use a lot of mixed media. Ink pencil, colored pencil. I like spray paint. Using just one thing gets boring; I like mixing it up.”

Inspiration: “Just what happens in my daily life. What I see and experience in and out of school, what I feel, how I process my world. You know, if a teacher asks me for a paper, I ask if I can draw because it’s easier. I always have ideas in the back of my head. And culture, especially. I grew up with an Italian mom and a Mexican dad, which has been a big influence. What I’ve seen in other countries and the people I’ve met; I’ve learned so much in a cultural way and that really helps with my work.”

Style: “I started when I was a little kid, just drawing randomly. As I aged, I realized it was something deeper than just drawing and that took me a while to figure out. Because of that, I don’t really follow what the teachers tell me to do. How I see it in my head is how I put it on the paper. I grow by trying things and experimenting. Of course, there are ways to go by the book, but it’s mostly what comes out of my head.”

Why: “I’ve always liked it. It became a hobby and a passion. Now it’s how I process everything, how I express myself. I have to do it, now, and some people don’t really understand [that]. I like that everyone has their own way of doing it; that’s my favorite part. The art I do is mine, no one else’s. And everyone has different ways they think it should be. Some people don’t get what’s up in a painting, but the artists knows exactly what’s up because it’s his. It’s a really special thing.”

Grade: 11

Tools: White paper, black gel pen

What:  ”I just take one of my black gel pens and they always turn out as these swirls, and just let it be free flowing and almost organic looking because I know when I’ve tried to make liner, geometric shapes, it just doesn’t look very sophisticated or interesting. Sometimes when I’m anxious it just comes out.  The intent is to be almost therapeutic. Sometimes I’ll just do it because I feel like getting something out.”

Began: “Honestly, a couple months ago. I made my first one when I didn’t really want to concentrate on what I had to be doing and it was just simple- my technique for doing it. So I just kept replicating it. Sometimes I do them in class because sometimes I don’t want to stop when I’m doing one. And It’s encouraging when someone looks over and is like, “Oh that’s cool” or, “That’s intricate” or, “That looks like a maze” or something, and that makes me feel good and it makes me want to keep doing them.”

Inspiration:  ”I’m just really inspired by things that are naturally occurring and look really cool. Or, like in mathematics, fractals. I think those are really awesome. They’re just like shapes with a lot of different little designs inside of them.  When I’m inspired to do something it’s because I really want to sit down to work on it and that’s when I try to make them the most elaborate. When I sit down to draw one it’s not really with a purpose; I use it as an outlet. I feel like if I use other outlets I’m going to be kind of disappointed, but usually, if I need to focus on something, and I end up drawing one of my shape designs, I feel like I did something constructive. I’ve tried adding color to them, but there’s something I really like about black gel pen on white paper. Especially since I could never draw comic book looking doodles like I wanted.”

Results are as follows:
Best Styling: Gaby Azorsky
Best Accessories: Claire Simchuck
Best Altered Designs: Natalie Pierce
Best 3D Art: Sarah King
Best Original Design: Miranda Treas

Grade: 12

Tools: “I like to use different mediums; I really like experimenting.”

Inspiration: “I don’t really have any inspiration. I feel like a lot of it is random and mostly just things I like or if I have a cool idea I want to pursue.”

Involvement: “It was just something I always enjoyed and wanted to be better at. I’ve taken design, drawing, and photo. Drawing was my favorite because I feel like drawing is a big part of any art work.”

Favorite Part: “I like the way it relates different things in a visual sense. I like that pieces can have multiple meanings and it’s an easy way to express yourself.”

Grade: 10

Tools: Pens, computer paper

Inspiration: “Usually, like everybody else, it’s love interests or lame stuff like bugs and birds.”

Future Plans: “I haven’t really figured it out yet. I know I want to do art, because that’s all I do. But I’m sort of morally opposed to art careers because a lot of the time it’s like you’re paying someone for self expression and I don’t really believe in that. I don’t really believe in getting paid for sports or art or entertainment, really because you’re not really doing anything.”

Recent Work: “Pretty recently I was in chemistry class and I started doing some doodles that were chemistry based and that was pretty cool.”

Grade: 12

Tools: Pencil to sketch out initial piece. Oil pastels and acrylic paints for AP concentration. “I like the vibrant looks acrylics get when I’m finished with them.”

AP Studio Art Concentration: “Through each piece I try to highlight animal qualities in people. Because we’re different species, but we share similar qualities. In each piece, I’m putting an animal head on a human body. The one I’m working on right now is a bull’s head on a business man’s body and he’s holding money.”

Future: “I want to major in fine arts or graphic design. I’m not totally sure about which school I want to go to, but art is something that I love and I’m very passionate about it. I plan on doing art even if I’m homeless; it’s what I want to do and what I plan to do. Even if I don’t have a lot of money, art is what gets me through most days, and that happiness is more important than money.”

Inspiration: “This sounds weird, but I get a lot of inspiration from Lady Gaga. Those who know me know that I’m Lady Gaga obsessed. She inspires me to do my own thing and that’s what draws me to her. When I first found out about her, I thought she was weird and she almost made me uncomfortable, which was interesting and daring. I try to do that with my art. I want to make people uncomfortable so it leaves an impression. That’s what people remember. It may not be accepted, but I’m fascinated by weird things.”

Grade: 9

Tools: camera, pencils, acrylic paint. “I’ll work with whatever I’m given.”

Benefit of Different Media: “I like doing different projects with different mediums because there are different ways to do different styles. I like the diversity and how it turns out in the end.”

Began: “Probably when I could first start writing because my dad would always encourage me to get involved and do little projects. He still has some of my projects from when I was three.”

Inspiration: “My dad. People have always told me they love my dad’s artwork and I see it everywhere I go. I’ve always been inspired to be artistic like him.”

Grade: 12

Training: “I am mostly self-taught and beyond that I have only taken a few school classes.”

Inspired by: “Art reflects my emotion and what I personally am feeling. It’s not influenced by a particular artist, more the world around me.”

Future Plans: “I would love to continue with photography. I currently have a 365 going and I would like to either do another one next year or maybe a 52 [similar to a 365 but once a week]. I would also like to take some classes in college.”

A little about the pieces:   The leaves that form a boat is one of Leyann’s favorite pieces, entitled the “Maple SS”.  ”I like my pieces to focus more on simplicity and not flamboyance. It has a deeper meaning to me than what most see when they look at it.” The big bowl with a leaf pattern is also of significance to the artist. She feels that it symbolizes the first time she was recognized as an artist, when she and other classmates toured the Missouri River and put together an art gallery.

Spencer Davis | Harbinger Online

“The students learned all about the ecology of the river, the history of the river, its importance to Kansas City and to the local and national environment,” Finkelston said. “Then they turned all that information into artwork. We went to scrapyards under the bridges and learned about pollution and everything that Missouri River Relief deals with.”

The teachers of the East art department last year were faced with the task of selecting students that they felt would truly appreciate the trip.

Spencer Davis | Harbinger Online

Because it was a small group, around fifteen students, the students felt extremely privileged to be among the few chosen.

“I was really surprised. I never expected to get selected for this because I am not a big art person,” says now senior Leyann Dahlgren. “I don’t think I am all that good so I was really excited and I think I kinda stepped up to the plate and had to improve a lot to make pieces for this.”

The artists selected covered a wide range of mediums. The works produced varied from photographs, to graphic design to even sculpture-like pieces.

Spencer Davis | Harbinger Online

Students approached what they saw on the river from many different viewpoints. While some, like Long, chose to focus on the combining of nature and human interference, others saw the pollution in a more negative light.

“We had to try to raise up money for the river because its just so dirty right now,” said senior Jennifer Huran. “There’s just trash everywhere and there’s no one on the water.”

A semester later, with the help and generosity of Studio B Art Gallery, the students finally put their work on display. As visitors passed through, many were amazed by the quality of work that was produced.

Sam Rider, a senior at East, remarked that he, “didn’t know there were artists my age at East that were this good.”

Spencer Davis | Harbinger Online

“I’m really, really happy. The kids did an incredible job and there’s a lot of great work and it’s selling pretty well,” Finkelston said during the showing. “I hope the kids had a great experience. I mean its certainly been great for me.”

Grade: 12

Tools: Graphite, acrylic paints, sketch book

Favorite Type of Drawing: “I love drawing people and interactions. Especially couples or other pairs of people. The paintings [see below] are part of a narrative of my cousins growing up as they move towards the awkward middle school years.”

Began Drawing: ”I’ve always liked to draw. I took basic art freshman year. This was the first year where I really began taking it seriously with AP art and drawing classes.”

Future Plans: Classes in college. Possibly a minor.

Grade: 11

Medium: Greeting Cards

Tools: Scrapbook materials, different paper styles, stickers, jewelry

What makes her unique: Sells homemade greeting cards to local art galleries and book stores.

Where does she sell the greeting cards: Commission from Art Galleries such as Olive Branch Art

Why she does what she does: “I make greeting cards because I don’t have to think about it, I can just do it, not like school where you have to focus and think about what you are doing.”

Grade: 10

Medium: Jewelry

Inspiration: Family and friends

Why She Does What She Does: “My cousin got me into jewelry during a trip to Austin and I have loved it ever since.”

What Makes Her Unique: Sells her jewelry to the community

Video Credit: Mary Newman

Medium: Mixed Media, Watercolor

Tools: Water Color set, 35mm Black and White Camera, her family’s Nikon, and Rubber Cement

Inspired By: Impressionist Artists; Yinka Shabare whose fashion inspired works place African culture in a european setting.

Recent Training: Early College Program at the Art Institute of Chicago

What Makes You Unique: “I want to put a lot of meaning into my work. I try to make every decision have a reason behind it. Even if it’s just aesthetics, I like to have a reason.”

Medium: Photography

Tool of Choice: Nikon D3100 – “I used to be restricted to my mom’s pink portable camera, but I used my sixteenth birthday money to buy a DSLR (Digital Single-Lens Reflex)

Signature: “I don’t usually make any edits. Maybe I’ll make a photo black and white but besides that I prefer it stays as is. I consider the composition and the subject of the photo to be what makes a picture, not the edits the photographer makes.”

Focus: ”I prefer to take portraits. I also like to work with angles in architecture.”

Why Do You Do What You Do: “It relieves stress. I like looking back on photos and reliving memories and travels.”

Stick Figure

by Natalie Pierce

I am a twist tie

Slender and small

Easily manipulated

Twisted, pulled. Now I’m tight.

Arms interlocked like a knot.

I need someone to untwist me.

Out of control.

My insides turn, wishing for life.

Head and body disconnected.

Or is it too connected?

Yanked, tightened.

Hair thins

It is so unnoticed

In another dimension

My drug of choice

A lifetime of coping

I will learn otherwise

My tie will untwist.

It will learn to stay straight.

I will no longer be pulled

No longer a stick figure

I will stay straight.

Natalie Pierce reading her piece titled “The Wackness”:

[soundcloud url="http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/22298119"]

Graphite covering her fingers, senior Cassie Sterbenz leans back to examine her work. The image that has been stuck in her mind all day has finally been placed permanently on paper. Her creation, a Native american chief, stares hopefully into the distance, the future. She smiles, her mind feeling clear for the first time all day. For as long as she can remember, drawing has been her way of making sense of the world. Taking seemingly pointless scenes and objects and giving them meaning.

“When I draw, I am not just making something that will look nice. It needs something behind it,” she says, pulling out sketches from past art classes. That “something” behind her art is exactly what makes it unique. There always seems to be a meaning, a thought, a hidden message imploring the viewer to look closer.

She began drawing because of her dad. “He is the one who made me start, now it’s other artists and people who push me farther and make me want to try new things,” she says when discussing her artistic beginnings. While trying things such as painting and other media are new and exciting, plain and simple graphite pencils are her tools of choice. Her thoughts flow from her mind through the pencil to create emotion filled works.
After winning several awards and Best-in-show at a school sponsored art show during her junior year, Cassie looks forward to the coming year with anticipation. She is enrolled in AP art and is beginning to look at which college programs suit her style the most. She plans to strongly focus on art in the coming years. “It is such a huge part of my life. Art is my form of expression. It helps me discover who I am and what I like.” It is clear from her art thus far that Cassie is not afraid to try new things and express exactly what she feels, not relying on others to choose her expressions for her.

Senior Andrew Watkins had always been intrigued by his mother’s old cameras that she kept around the house. When he was younger, Andrew used to play with the cameras and take fake picture of things he saw that sparked his interest.  Now, with a Penta MX camera of his own and a larger variety of potential shots, Andrew continues his love of photography in his free time.

“I like the idea of recording a moment in time,” Watkins said.

The casual photography started when Watkins was eight-years-old, and by the time he reached high school his time spent playing with old cameras had paid off: he was able to teach himself how to take real photos. Watkins was never interested in creating an artificial scene or setting up shoots of his own, but, instead, has always found joy in taking pictures of the elements of nature.

“I’m more drawn to shoot things that accrue naturally,” Watkins said.

In the summer, when there are less time constraints, Andrew is able to go out about once a week to photograph with his close friends. Since their group shoots are predominantly spontaneous, their choice of location is usually done at random. Often he visits downtown or the Crossroads, areas he and his friends know well, to see if they can find a new angle somewhere, or photograph something they’ve never noticed. Their common interest in photography is driven by the idea of documenting something in a way that it’s never been seen before.

“We’ll shoot anything: nature, people in nature—sometimes candids of strangers,” Watkins said.

After shoots, Watkins often uploads his pictures onto Flickr, an image hosting website that allows photographers and artists to share and critique each other’s work.

“It’s an easy way to share with the people you shot with and the people who couldn’t make it,” Watkins said.

To get his photos online, Andrew has to scan the pictures and load them to his computer beforehand, since he prefers film photography to digital. Film means more to Watkins because, with digital, the entire process of developing photos is eliminated.

“Digital isn’t nearly as rewarding without the process of developing it yourself,” Watkins said.

Unlike digitally taken images, film leaves some mystery as to what the photos will actually end up looking like. Watkins also loves the anticipation of waiting to see how his pictures have turned out.

“The surprise you get after developing the roll of film is the best part, since you never know what you have beforehand,” Watkins said. “If you’re interested in photography, film is definitely something you should try before going straight to digital.”

Even though Watkins lacks the time to be completely devoted to photography alone, shooting with be a life long hobby driven not only by a love for it but also the satisfaction he feels seeing his finished photos.

While the idea of photography has always interested him, it wasn’t until this past year that senior Charles Hotchkiss made a hobby of it. Inspired by several of his friends, Hotchkiss began shooting on his own, as well as in group shoots.

“I think photography helps to get different perspectives of the world,” Hotchkiss said.

Hotchkiss was drawn to photography when he noticed how it revealed things in ways that had never been seen. He also realized how many different ways one thing can appear from different views. For instance, a building could be shot from a hundred different angles, and each one would look completely different. He also noticed how little things that usually go by unnoticed can be photographed to become a piece of artwork.

“Photography just gives you a lot of insight into the things that you wouldn’t normally recognize,” Hotchkiss said.

Opposed to staging shoots, Hotchkiss prefers to photograph nature and architecture. He enjoys the challenge of finding a new fresh angle to something that people see every day. Not only is photography a fun challenge, it is also an easy way for Hotchkiss to relax.

“When you are shooting, you don’t have to worry about anything other than what you’re shooting and trying to capture it,” Hotchkiss said.

Once Hotchkiss captures his shots after a day of taking photos, it’s easy to share his photos with everyone through Flickr.

“Flickr is really helpful because people can see your photos and tell you what you could do better or what you’ve done right already,” Hotchkiss said.

Seeing other peoples works and reading the critiques off of Flickr also helps Hotchkiss to get more ideas of what possible things to shoot. Having photography as just a hobby makes it easier for Hotchkiss; he can go out with an idea of what to shoot or new angles to try, and then just lose himself in the shoot and relax.

Because Hotchkiss feels that photography has such a relaxing aura around it, he keeps his shooting completely separate from his school work. For Hotchkiss, photography is and always will be just a hobby and once it starts being part of school, its starts to seem less like a free time activity, and more like work.

“I like to think of it as just my personal thing that I do in my personal time because I enjoy it,” Hotchkiss said.

Sophomore Laura Metz was introduced to photography at a young age. It started with her dad, Brian Metz, who had a passion for photography.

“He was always taking pictures, and the pictures turned out so cool that I wanted to try,” Metz said. “Once I got the camera in my hands, I fell in love.”

Her dad then intertwined that passion with his love for his family by taking his family on trips to gorgeous locations for vacation, and his camera was never far away.

The hallway leading to the living room of the Metz house is covered in picturesque scenes from the family’s trips. There’s a photo Laura and her sister Megan standing next to a sea lion cocking it’s head for the camera in the Galapagos Islands. A shot of a sperm whale flipping its tail as it dives into the Pacific in Baja, California hangs next to it.

According to mother Jane Metz, Laura’s dad got the whole family cameras three years ago so they could shoot together during their Spring Break vacation on an Alaskan cruise. Therefore, Laura has her own addition to the collection in their hallway: a portrait of a long plank walkway covered in netting nestled in the midst of Alaskan wildlife.

“My favorite place to shoot by far was the Galapagos,” Laura said. “It was just a gorgeous setting. Since people aren’t very common there, the wildlife isn’t afraid of them and they were always coming up and investigating, which made for some great shots.”

Laura’s preferred style is modeled portraits. Getting photo shoot ides from her daily experiences and surroundings, she then likes to shoot friends and family.

“If I see the light hitting an object or a person in a cool way, I’ll pull out my camera and tell whoever is with me ‘stop so I can get this shot!’” Laura said. “I’ve shot most of my family, but my sister hasn’t let me do her yet. I’ll get her soon.”

Laura’s family and friends have been very supportive; her mom has readily paid for extra classes, and her dad has taught her everything he knows.

“She was really fun to work with,” friend Jessie Burnes, a fellow sophomore, said. “You can tell how much she likes it just by working with her and watching her. She’s very serious about what she does, but at the same time she’s really fun and upbeat when she’s shooting.”

Laura has advanced her love of photography by taking Photo 1, is planning to take Photo 2 next year, and is deciding on which extra classes to take through Johnson County Community College. She is also considering taking classes through a special organization, Nikon Photography Classes, that comes to town every three years.

“My main goal for the future is to get more familiar with the different kinds of cameras, lenses, and other equipment, and I’d also like to get to know my camera a lot better,” Laura said. “I was also recently certified for SCUBA at Padi Scuba, and would be really interested in eventually taking an underwater photography class at their location in Kansas.”

While she is committed to expanding her knowledge on the subject of photography, for now it will still remain just a pastime.

“While I really like it, I would never consider becoming a professional photographer,” Laura said. Although she plans on becoming a dermatologist, she will always make time for her passion.

As many East kids do, junior Anna Dancinger signed up for Photo 1 with the mindset that it would just be another fun elective. Instead, she discovered that this wouldn’t be just another art course to her: it became her new passion.

“I really like how every picture shows a different self expression,” Dancinger said. “I also love that every picture is unique and special to the photographer who took it.”

Dancinger draws inspiration from a variety of sources. Firstly, she gets ideas from projects assigned in her Photo 2 class. She also is also a huge fan of a photographer named Wendy Ewald.

“What I like about her photos is that she takes them of completely ordinary people and situation but makes them look beautiful,” Dancinger said. “For example, she had taken some pictures of these kids, then printed them and let them draw all over them. That way her style and their style were reflected in the picture.”

Dancinger prefers to shoot portraits in creative and unique ways. She’s inspired by  spreads from the high fashion magazines she reads (Vogue, Glamour, etc.).

“I like that these are the most daring portraits,” Dancinger said. “They take pictures of people dressed up and made up in ways you’d never think of trying. I like their really simplistic portraits as well as the ones that are ridiculously abstract. I’m not really a middle ground sort of person.”

She then tries to emulate those photos with her own personal twist.

“I did a shoot with my friends where I teased their hair really crazy and then did their makeup really heavily,” Dancinger said. “It was one of my favorites to shoot, because it was fun and there were a lot of different angles to go with it.”

To expand her knowledge of the subject, Dancinger is taking Photo 3 and AP Studio Art with a focus on photography. She wants to learn about the different lenses, their effects on photos, and how to make natural effects before the processing stage, where you edit effects on the computer and other design programs.

“Currently, I have a long focal lens [eliminate depth] and a fish-eye lens [which looks like the view from inside a fishbowl],” Dancinger said. “My favorite one to use is the fish-eye lens . I like to use them because they affect the picture before it’s processed on the computer.”

When her friends aren’t available to shoot, Dancinger turns to her most loyal models: her sisters.

“I use my two sisters,  Audrey [10] and Kate [13], on most of my shoots,” Dancinger said. “My favorite part of shooting is being able to find the perfect poses and finding the best way to use the natural light for the shot.

Dancinger is serious about her photography, and wants to pursue it in college. However, if it doesn’t work out, she says said it wouldn’t be that big of a setback.

“Even if I couldn’t go professional, it wouldn’t be the end of the world to me,” Dancinger said. “I’d still continue it as a hobby.”