Rye Arts Center Exhibits Work by Emerging Young Artists

The Rye Arts Center showcased the work of up and coming young artists Thursday during the opening night of its annual exhibition "Student Studio: Emerging High School Talent."

The exhibition features photographs and paintings from high school students in Westchester and Fairfield counties. Three students from each high school—including Rye Country Day, Rye High School and Sleepy Hollow High School—displayed one piece of art in the center's gallery.

Jenna Frank, a junior at Rye Country Day, painted a work called "A Glance Over the Shoulder," a mixed-media painting of a young woman that was made from materials such as water color, paint, sea glass, foam board and paper.

"Recently, this is probably one of my favorites that I've done, because it's a mixed-media piece, which allows you to play with everything from water color, paint, paper, tissue," she said. "So, it allows you pretty much to use whatever you want and you get pretty hands on with it."

Deanna Melillo, a junior at Sleepy Hollow High School, exhibited a photo taken last summer of a bumblebee sitting on a sunflower at the New York Botanical Garden.

"I just like taking pictures. It's kind of a release," Melillo said.

Several other students displayed a range of artwork—from portraits of celebrities such as the singer Seal and model Amber Rose to paintings and photographs of nature.

Kelly Pereira, a senior at Sleepy Hollow High, showcased an acrylic painting on wood called  "The Escape," while Sleep Hollow junior Marta Baran's "Sunset Waters" showed the sun setting over the ocean.

Baran, who did not attend Thursday's event, wrote in a description near the painting that it was "probably one of the most challenging pieces I have created to date."

"It was a new experience for me as an artist, but the outcome was rewarding," she wrote.

Peggy Hill, executive director of the Rye Arts Center, said the ninth annual exhibition was a one of the many ways the center tries to support young artists.

"We want to encourage them to become the artists of tomorrow and without these students and grassroots organizations like the Arts Center, we won't have that," she said.

"This is one of our most outstanding shows," she added. "This is out of the box thinking. These kids have a message. They say it. They're not afraid to tell it."

For some of the students, painting and photography are not only a creative outlet, they're also a business venture.

Jacob Fleischman, whose photo "Through the Trees on BVI" was taken during a vacation in the British Virgin Islands, started a small business called Everest Productions when he was 13 so that he could promote his work. Fleischmann said he loves taking photos of animals and has even captured images of everything from his beloved dog to a moose in Wyoming.

"It's just fun to be able to capture things and look back on them," Fleischman said.

For Rye Neck High School student Casey Haviland—who exhibited a painting of a distorted Marilyn Monroe—art allows her to capture on a canvas what she cannot communicate in words.

"Painting is like a form of communication to me because I'm hearing-impaired," said Haviland, who is able to hear sound with the help of two hearing aids.

She said her painting of Monroe captures a flawed human being, something that everyone can relate to.

"Not everybody's perfect," she said. "But it's because of your imperfections that you're more beautiful."

The Rye Arts Center's "Student Studio: Emerging High School Talent" exhibition will be on display until March 24.  Call (914) 967-0700 ext.33 for more information.