This past summer, K-5 visual arts chair Gerry-louise Robinson and middle school art teacher Sofie Siegmann traveled to Thailand to learn more about the country’s art, culture and history, and how they can be integrated into Harker’s visual arts programs. The trip was part of the Raju and Bala Vegesna Teacher Excellence Program, which supports teachers seeking exciting professional development opportunities.
“Thailand is a rich melting pot of art and culture that has embraced traits from all the countries that border it,” said Robinson. “There are so many visible connections with India and East Asia, cultures that are part of our Harker community.”
The excursion began with a three-day stint at the University of Fine Arts in Bangkok, where Robinson and Siegmann gave a presentation and participated in a project with the university’s teachers and students. “We got to explore the many disciplines that the college has to offer and chatted with many professors who are practicing artists in their own right,” said Robinson.
“It was the most rewarding experience, because it brought everybody together,” said Siegmann “The students worked at home, and in the end we all created a wall with over 500 pieces!”
They then visited temples in the northern and southern regions of the country, admiring and analyzing the many different techniques that made each of the temples unique. The trek also included stops at places where locals were creating ceramics in a variety of styles, as well as visits to art studios to meet with and learn from local artists. During the several workshops they attended, Robinson and Siegmann took part in soap carving, paper making and mask painting.
Robinson said she hopes to use the striking scenes she experienced in Thailand’s floating markets into her instruction, in addition to paper making projects and works involving elephants, which are icons of Thai culture. Siegmann said she planned to integrate at least two pieces inspired by what she learned in Thailand into each of her classes, including paper making, soap carving and printmaking.
The teachers thanked global education director Jennifer Walrod for organizing the trip. “Jennifer Walrod did an outstanding job in putting this trip to Thailand together,” said Siegmann. “It was such a smooth, adventuresome experience.” Sakchai Boon-Intr, a professor at the University of Fine Arts, was also instrumental in making the experience so worthwhile. “He did so much to enable us to be at the college and engage with the students and staff,” Robinson. Finally, they thanked the Vegesnas, whose endowment granted this unique opportunity.
“Thank you to the Vegesna family for making this possible,” Siegmann said. “What an opportunity!”
On March 13, senior Raymond Banke and junior Kathy Fang were named national gold medalists in the 2019 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. Banke won for his piece in the Future New category, titled “American Dreamers,” and Fang for her critical essay “A New Woman: A Rediscovery of Women’s Roles in Shakespeare’s The Tempest.” They are the first Harker students to receive the honor since Xinyi “Cherry” Xie ‘12 in 2012.
As national medalists, both students are now eligible to attend the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards national events in New York City in June. The national events include a ceremony at Carnegie Hall and an exhibition featuring the works of top honorees. Earlier this year, Banke received a total of 16 regional awards, including Gold Keys in printmaking, design and art portfolio, as well as Silver Keys in architectural and industrial design, sculpture, printmaking and photography. His nine honorable mentions were awarded for two works each in drawing and illustration and mixed media, as well as submissions in the art portfolio, painting, sculpture, printmaking, and architecture and industrial design categories. In addition to her Mold Medal, Fang also received a regional Gold Key for her essay and two honorable mentions for photography.
Three other students also received national recognition in the form of silver medals. Junior Eric Fang won in photography for his piece, titled “Into the Unknown”; Anna Gert, also a junior, won for her critical essay “Illnesses in Frankenstein: An Explication of Victor’s Recurring Sickness”; and senior Alexander Young’s “A Iaccian Sestina” won in the poetry category.
A total of 64 upper school students were recognized in the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards this year, receiving regional Gold Keys, Silver Keys and honorable mentions.
Upper school students recognized in visual arts are:
Katelyn Chen, grade 11: Three honorable mentions (one for mixed media, two for drawing and illustration)
Elizaveta Egorova, grade 12: Three Gold Keys (one for digital media, two for design), three Silver Keys (digital art) and two honorable mentions (comic art and digital art)
Eric Fang, grade 11: Gold Key (photography)
Kathy Fang, grade 11: Two honorable mentions (photography)
Anna Gert, grade 11: Gold Key (painting)
Lilia Gonzales, grade 12: Gold Key (digital art)
Rose Guan, grade 12: Two honorable mentions (photography)
Ellen Guo, grade 11: Two honorable mentions (painting, and drawing and illustration)
Susan He, grade 12: Two Gold Keys (digital art), honorable mention (drawing and illustration)
Alexander Young, grade 12: Two Gold Keys (poetry, flash fiction), six honorable mentions (two for poetry, two for personal essay/memoir, humor, writing portfolio)
Katherine Zhang, grade 12: Three honorable mentions (journalism, two for poetry)
A previous version of this story mistakenly omitted Kathy Fang’s Gold Medal win as well as this year’s Silver Medal winners. Harker News apologizes for the error.
This article originally appeared in the summer 2016 Harker Quarterly.
Students of all ages displayed works in a colorful array of art exhibits held across all four campuses. The entire Harker community was invited to enjoy the annual shows, which featured the talents of both budding and seasoned student artists. Enjoy this special Harker Quarterly art show retrospective!
Preschool Year-Round Exhibits
Throughout the year, Harker Preschool holds various art exhibits. The third annual Year-End Art Showcase featured works from every student on campus. The captivating exhibit, which ran during the last month of the school year, was also a highlight of Grandparents’ Day at the preschool, held in May.
“Every other month at the preschool, we displayed new studio artwork in the art gallery. Our Grandparents’ Day showcase was a culminating event that highlighted the variety of processes experienced by the artists throughout the year,” said Alexandria Kerekez, Harker Preschool’s art specialist.
When asked about their favorite art project of the year, many of the 4- and 5-year-olds responded that it was “The Canvas Project.” That project, which was included in the art showcase, comprised a collection of canvas paintings crafted by the eldest preschoolers.
The representational work consisted of drafting an image of “a wish” and then translating it into an acrylic painting. Meanwhile, transitional kindergartners started a new art studio project known as “The Shell Shop,” in which they created shells not for exhibit, but to be sold on-site in a store, complete with name tags for employees and a cash register.
Lower School: Art On and Off Campus
The Lower School Art Show opened on the morning of April 25 at the Bucknall campus, with grade 5 docents on hand to help guide parents through the show and serve refreshments afterward.
Sponsored by the lower school art department and afterschool art program, the show featured a wide array of creative works, including drawings, paintings and ceramics. The display, which ran until May 20, was arranged by themes and grade levels, with all classes represented.
Adding to the excitement this year was the fact that, for the first time, a dozen lower school students also had their work represented at the 59th annual Saratoga Rotary Art Show, held the weekend of April 30. The Rotary show displays the best works of up-and-coming artists, ages 5-13, from local schools as part of its larger, daylong event held at West Valley College in Saratoga.
“This was the first time we have done this, and I was so excited! I hope to enter our wonderfully creative students annually in the years to come. I was so proud of each one that it was very difficult to select so few,” recalled lower school art teacher Gerry-louise Robinson.
Middle School: Winter Preview Exhibit and Spring Exhibition
It wasn’t business as usual for the middle school art show this year. For the first time, an art exhibit was held at the conclusion of each semester, instead of one show at the end of the school year.
The Middle School Preview Exhibit, held Jan. 5-29 in the Blackford campus’ multipurpose room, showcased the works of Art I students. The Spring Exhibition featured the works of Art II students. It opened on April 8 at the upper school’s main lobby gallery and then moved to the middle school campus on May 9 where it remained for the year.
A special morning art reception with tea and coffee was held on May 12 for parents. Splitting the shows not only allowed each semester’s students to enjoy a show devoted to their work, but it allowed more physical space for each piece, giving attendees room to more fully enjoy the art.
“The result [of having two shows] was breath around the pieces!” recalled Elizabeth Saltos, middle school visual arts teacher. Both shows included colorful paintings, sketches, ceramics, figurines and wire sculptures. For the second year in a row, there was also a campuswide cake party held in the multipurpose room during the lunch periods on May 18. Attendees had a blast eating cake and checking out the art on display.
Upper School: Winter AP Studio Art Exhibition and Spring Artstravaganza
In late April, upper school artists, writers and musicians showcased their work at the annual Artstravaganza, held in the Nichols Hall atrium.
Students, faculty and parents perused artwork and writing (including several winners of Scholastic Art & Writing Awards) while music poured in through the rotunda, courtesy of The Harker School Jazz Band in its final performance of the year. The event afforded students the opportunity to share their work with the Harker community in a relaxed setting.
“It’s something that students and faculty look forward to quite a bit, because it’s always a fun thing and they’re always amazed,” said Jaap Bongers, visual arts department chair. “It boosts [the artists’] self-confidence; it makes them proud. That’s really the main benefit – and it’s a party at the end of the year!”
Back in February, students in AP Studio Art showcased their Advanced Placement exam portfolios. A throng of visitors took in a wide variety of paintings, sculptures, drawings and prints in many different styles and media.
One of the featured artists, Kaylan Huang, grade 12, used ink and colored pencil to create small-scale drawings of cities including Tokyo, San Francisco and Amsterdam. Fellow senior Ankur Karwal used clever graphic design to examine the symbolism of famous brand names including Louis Vuitton, Apple and Nike.
Three students were honored for their submissions to the Growing Up Asian in America Awards. Freshman Emily Chen’s essay, “Airplane Dreams,” was named best in class; Angela Kim, grade 10, received an honorable mention for her art submission, “The Game of Immigration;” Katrina Liou, grade 8, also received an honorable mention for her art submission, “Waving Goodbye.”
“I think it is wonderful that three talented students from Harker are part of this year’s GUAA Awards,” said Andrea Yamazaki Williamson, advisory committee member. “It is GUAA’s 20th anniversary, so it’s a special year and milestone for the program.”
The contest solicits works of art, essays and videos from students in grades K-12 that show what it’s like to grow up both Asian and American in the Bay Area.
“There were close to 800 submissions this year and a total of 20 winners and 30 honorable mentions from throughout the nine-county Bay Area,” noted Williamson. The awards ceremony took place May 3 at the Asian Art Museum.
Congrats to three Harker seniors for receiving recognition in the National YoungArts Foundation competition! Apoorva Rangan was awarded an honorable mention for her flute playing and Sindhu Ravuri received an honorable mention for writing/creative nonfiction. Cindy Liu, who has received many past accolades for her photos, received a merit award in the photography category.
This year, YoungArts named 787 winners out of more than 11,000 applications from students in 47 states. Submissions were judged through a multi-tiered, blind adjudication process and evaluated by celebrated masters in their artistic fields.
The National YoungArts Foundation was established in 1981 to identify and support the next generation of visual, literary, design and performing artists; assist them at critical junctures in their educational and professional development; and raise appreciation for the arts in America. Each year, YoungArts receives about 11,000 applications from 15-18 year old artists (grades 10-12). From these, about 800 winners are selected. At the request of the Commission on Presidential Scholars, which is appointed by the president, YoungArts is the exclusive path to the U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts Awards.
The Museums of Los Gatos held an artist reception in mid-April for its annual high school exhibition. Four Harker students were among those selected to show pieces in the exhibition, which runs through May 10. This year’s theme is “Bridges: Facing Challenges.” Kevin Ke, grade 11, won second place in watercolor/drawing category; Sophia Luo, grade 11, won judges recognition for theme; Archana Podury, grade 12, had two drawings selected and Kelly Wang, grade 12, had one drawing selected for the juried exhibition.
This year, the museum received 800 entries from students throughout Santa Clara County. Three jurors – art professors from San Jose State University, Santa Clara University and Mission College –selected 86 works of art for this year’s exhibition.
In late June, a 3-D art piece created by recent graduate Manon Audebert was chosen to be featured at the 2014-15 AP Studio Art Exhibit. Audebert’s work, a visual representation of tension showing pieces of cloth being pulled in multiple directions, was among the 30 pieces selected from nearly 49,000 portfolios submitted for entry into the exhibit. Pieces for the exhibition are chosen by experienced high school and college art instructors, who select work that exemplifies the high standards and hard work of students in the AP program.
The 2014-15 AP Studio Art Exhibit begins July 9 at the AP Annual Conference, which takes place in Philadelphia from July 9-13. It will then head to Princeton, N.J., to be displayed at the conference center at the Educational Testing Service. For the remainder of the year and into 2015, the exhibit will be shown at various locations throughout the country, providing inspiration to students and information to teachers in search of professional development opportunities. The remaining locations for the exhibit will be announced later this year.
“I was completely shocked and honored to be selected,” said Audebert. “It was a great validation of all the work that I put in during the year.” She credited upper school art teacher Jaap Bongers as a crucial source of guidance: “He pushed me throughout the year to improve my designs and stay on track.” Audebert plans to attend Pomona College in the fall.
In late June, a 3-D art piece created by recent graduate Manon Audebert was chosen to be featured at the 2014-15 AP Studio Art Exhibit. Audebert’s work, a visual representation of tension showing pieces of cloth being pulled in multiple directions, was among the 30 pieces selected from nearly 49,000 portfolios submitted for entry into the exhibit. Pieces for the exhibition are chosen by experienced high school and college art instructors, who select work that exemplifies the high standards and hard work of students in the AP program.
The 2014-15 AP Studio Art Exhibit begins July 9 at the AP Annual Conference, which takes place in Philadelphia from July 9-13. It will then head to Princeton, N.J., to be displayed at the conference center at the Educational Testing Service. For the remainder of the year and into 2015, the exhibit will be shown at various locations throughout the country, providing inspiration to students and information to teachers in search of professional development opportunities. The remaining locations for the exhibit will be announced later this year.
“I was completely shocked and honored to be selected,” said Audebert. “It was a great validation of all the work that I put in during the year.” She credited upper school art teacher Jaap Bongers as a crucial source of guidance: “He pushed me throughout the year to improve my designs and stay on track.” Audebert plans to attend Pomona College in the fall.
In late June, a 3-D art piece created by recent graduate Manon Audebert was chosen to be featured at the 2014-15 AP Studio Art Exhibit. Audebert’s work, a visual representation of tension showing pieces of cloth being pulled in multiple directions, was among the 30 pieces selected from nearly 49,000 portfolios submitted for entry into the exhibit. Pieces for the exhibition are chosen by experienced high school and college art instructors, who select work that exemplifies the high standards and hard work of students in the AP program.
The 2014-15 AP Studio Art Exhibit begins July 9 at the AP Annual Conference, which takes place in Philadelphia from July 9-13. It will then head to Princeton, N.J., to be displayed at the conference center at the Educational Testing Service. For the remainder of the year and into 2015, the exhibit will be shown at various locations throughout the country, providing inspiration to students and information to teachers in search of professional development opportunities. The remaining locations for the exhibit will be announced later this year.
“I was completely shocked and honored to be selected,” said Audebert. “It was a great validation of all the work that I put in during the year.” She credited upper school art teacher Jaap Bongers as a crucial source of guidance: “He pushed me throughout the year to improve my designs and stay on track.” Audebert plans to attend Pomona College in the fall.
Harker’s budding painters, photographers and mixed media gurus participated in two local art competitions in April and May, coming away with some prestigious awards. The office of Congressman Mike Honda held its annual “An Artistic Discovery” art contest on April 24.
The contest was open to students residing or going to school within the 15th Congressional District (which includes Harker). Winners included Anika Radiya-Dixit, grade 11, for best discussion piece, Sanjana Baldwa, grade 12, for best work in photography and Aditya Sastry, grade 12, for honorable mention in photography. Well done!
The museums of Los Gatos held “Social Matters,” a juried art exhibition at the Los Gatos Art Museum on May 9. The competition asked grade 9-12 students from around Santa Clara County: “What matters?” Awards ranged from being selected as an exhibited work to a grand prize award of $5,000.
Artists also could choose to include their framed pieces in a silent auction. Congratulations to Kacey Fang, grade 9, Tara Rezvani, grade 11, and Karen Wang, grade 12, whose art was exhibited and shown in the museum’ art reception.