DCCA News: Celebrate creativity

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A celebration of creativity lies in store for visitors to the 2016 High School Art Show now on view at the Anna Bier Gallery. Diverse media are utilized to depict a broad range of subjects at this exhibit of intriguing work by students from all high schools located in Darke County. Knowing where to begin when writing about the numerous objects displayed presents a dilemma, as all are worthy of notice; however, that problem is easily resolved by beginning with this admonition: Discover for yourself the talent that abounds among the youth of this community; make time to visit the High School Art Show before it closes on Saturday, May 28.

Greenville High School senior Kassidy Estes earned Best of Show for her portrait of a pretty blonde girl with a pensive expression which displays understanding of the facial planes as well as stunning value contrast. The First Place ribbon was awarded to Quincy Baltes, a senior at Versailles High school; his mesmerizing, detailed scratch art piece depicting two perspectives of a library could be explored for hours and hours, offering new opportunities for discovery at every sweep of the eye.

Lovely use of warm and cool neutrals by Chloe McKinney, a senior at Greenville High School, creates an elegant view of a striking piece of jewelry in a work that won the Second Place ribbon. Third Place went to Ansonia senior Ryan Willoughby’s scratch art portrait of a whimsical, wide-eyed monkey who peers back at the viewer just as zoo animals return the gaze of human gawkers.

An appropriately camel-colored ceramic camel that radiates personality and maybe even attitude garnered Fourth Place honors; Franklin-Monroe junior Nichole Berry crafted this piece. Megan Foster, a Greenville High School senior, offers an interesting up-close perspective of a clock-face executed in neutral colors that earned Fifth Place honors.

Several entries earned Honorable Mention awards, including Greenville senior Tyler Netzley’s fascinating paper collage featuring a baseball, bat, and glove that seems amazingly three-dimensional. Morgan Bingham, a senior from Franklin-Monroe also won an Honorable Mention ribbon with her lovely painting depicting boats docked at a pier under a colorful sunset dramatically reflected in the waters below.

Two other F-M students whose unique work gained Honorable Mention are juniors Logan Ressler and Malinda Nudecker; Ressler created a ceramic image of a wide-mouth bass appropriately mounted and looking real enough to hang among fishermen’s trophies, and Nudecker crafted a lovely working clock on canvas decorated with lavender and blue paint.

Two other pieces earning Honorable Mention are a strikingly colorful rooster on a green background painted by Greenville senior Quinton Muhlenkamp, who playfully decorated his work with real kernels of golden corn, and a colored pencil evocation of autumn, each letter of the word embellished with objects signifying the season, by Best of Show winner Kassidy Estes.

Eye-catching works not winning awards abound at the Gallery. Mississinawa Valley sophomore Paige Phillips’ portrait of an adorable bespectacled face with a sweetly started expression captures attention, as does Arcanum senior Maggie Heiser’s photo collage of a stately tree illustrating the four seasons. Emily Yount, a Mississinawa Valley freshman, created a delightful image of Ariel outlined in VHS tape sprawling out of a cassette labeled The Little Mermaid, while Ally Grow, a freshman from Bradford, produced a plethora of colorful cartoon-like images covered with polka dots.

Charming elephants created from rolled strips of paper parade across a quilling piece created by Versailles senior Colleen Pohlman; Ansonia junior Heath Barga used minutely printed words to realistically evoke a red International-Harvester tractor. Megan Bergman, an Ansonia senior, painted a lovely watercolor scene as viewed from behind pencilled rustic window panes.

All of this and many, many more imaginative creations are awaiting your perusal at the Anna Bier Gallery. The Anna Bier Gallery is open Saturdays from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m, and prior to performances at St. Clair Memorial Hall. To arrange a tour or to view the art at other times, contact Gallery Director Marcia Weidner at 937-417-3497.

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By Marilyn Delk

DCCA News

Marilyn Delk is a director of the Darke County Center for the Arts and can be reached at [email protected]. Viewpoints expressed in the article are the work of the author. The Daily Advocate does not endorse these viewpoints or the independent activities of the author.

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