Exeter Artists Win Top Prizes in Scholastic Art Competition

February 1, 2007

"Long Distance" by Sarah, an upper, received a Gold Key Award

Exeter students garnered over two dozen awards in the prestigious 2007 Scholastic Art Awards of New Hampshire, competing with over 1,400 entries from across the state in a variety of media including painting, photography, printmaking, sculpting and ceramics.

Exonians took 11 Gold Key awards, the competition's top prize. Gold Key winners will be entered into a national Scholastic Art competition to be judged in February. The Scholastic Art competition is the anchor program of the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers, which seeks to support creative development in youth and to identify artists for college scholarship consideration.

Sarah, an upper, won two Gold Keys for her paintings Long Distance and Cookies. "Whatever I do later in life will involve art in some way," says Sarah, who won a Gold Key in last year's competition as well. "Ms. Misenheimer is my painting teacher and my adviser. She helps me in many ways, and it's thanks to her encouragement that I submit to contests like this. It's so exciting when I hear I've won an award!"

"Exeter students are incredibly skillful, clever artists, and this level of recognition emphasizes that fact," says art instructor Misenheimer, who notes that students from preps to seniors were recipients of Gold Key Awards. "The wide variety of artwork they submitted is dazzling and the range of media is impressive."

"My mind has been opened to the possibilities in art at Exeter," says Carol, who won a Gold Key for her ceramic work, a teapot shaped like a pagoda. "I've been able to create in three dimensions." In addition to her hands-on art experience, Carol, an upper, says that her work on the board of directors of the Art Club has given her leadership experiences. "The arts are increasingly elevated and recognized on campus," she says. "This enriches the entire Academy community."

Carina, a senior, won both a Gold Key Award and one of five American Visions Awards for her print of birds flying over a wheat field. She plans to major in Chemistry in college, but values her opportunities to study art at Exeter. "Although art is a pastime for me, I've taken photography, ceramics and printmaking at Exeter, and I wish I could have taken even more art courses."

Learn more about:

Exeter's art department…

The Lamont Gallery…