Students win ribbons, scholarships at art show

Dee Albayrek takes three art classes at Wallkill Valley Regional High School.

On Wednesday evening, April 26, she won first place in the high school mixed media/open category of the school’s 13th annual art exhibition.

In addition, she was offered a $1,000 scholarship to attend a summer program at Montserrat College of Art in Beverly, Mass.

The junior is an exchange student from Turkey who did not have as much opportunity to study art in her home country, said Kim Scalise, one of her host parents in Hamburg.

”We chose her ... we saw that she wanted to study graphic design,” Scalise said.

Amy Fairweather, one of Dee’s art teachers at Wallkill Valley, said she was so excited to see her win first place and a scholarship. “She worked hard and she doubted how great it was so I was happy to see her work validated by the judges.

“Dee is such a special kid! I am so blessed to have her in my classes this year. She is driven, self-motivated and creative.”

Fairweather, who helped organize the art exhibition, said students from 11 high schools and six middle schools sent entries. About 110 pieces came from high school students and 30 from middle school students, “which is the norm for our show and the amount that fits in our gallery space.”

Montserrat awarded a total of three scholarships to its summer program plus three scholarships of $5,000 a year for four years to three students starting college in the fall.

Katie Flanagan of Vernon Township High School won a scholarship to the summer program.

SCAD awarded a summer scholarship to junior Georgia Wheeler of Wallkill Valley. It covers one week on campus, two workshops, housing, meals and social events.

Peter’s Valley School of Craft in Layton gave a workshop scholarship to Darla Templeton of Montville High School.

Among the art show winners were Elizabeth Coyle of Mount Olive High School who won the high school Best In Show Award for her painting “Melodies in Bloom.”

The middle school Best In Show Award went to Madeline Park of Macopin Middle School in West Milford.

Gabriella Medina of Macopin placed second and Brianna Strada of Kittatinny Junior High was first in the middle school division.

Here are other winners in the high school categories:

• Lily Guthrie of Wallkill Valley, first place for pottery.

• Julia Lengen of Sparta High School, first place for sculpture/crafts.

• Piper Carr of Vernon, first place for photography.

Fairweather told those gathered for the awards presentation, “Some of the biggest benefits of arts education for students are that it can actually improve student learning, school attendance, critical thinking skills and creativity. All of these are essential for successful academic performance and life beyond high school.”

In addition, studies have shown that the creativity and innovation used in the artistic process is highly valued by U.S. employers, she noted.