Wallkill Valley students win awards and art school scholarships

The young artists at Wallkill Valley Regional High School continue to win awards, acclaim, and, recently, money for continuing their education.

Fine arts instructor Amy Fairweather announced that four students won awards at the Montville Virtual Visions art show, which was held on May 12 and hosted by Montville Township High School. They all also won scholarships to the University of Hartford Art School.

● Paige Cocchio, won third place in pottery for her slab tea set. She won a scholarship of $23,000 a year for four years, for a total of $92,000.

● Saige Slater won an honorable mention in the mixed media/open category for her dry point etching “Golden Girl.” She won a scholarship of $21,000 a year for four years, for a total of $84,000.

● Kyndel Whiteford won third place in the mixed media/open category for her etching series “I Am Not A Commodity.” She won a scholarship of $21,000 a year for four years, for a total of $84,000.

● Kaitlyn Czifra won second place in the mixed media/open category for “Reckoning.” She also won a scholarship of $23,000 a year for four years, for a total of $92,000.

Artists from eleven schools in New Jersey submitted their work to the show. The participating schools included Wallkill, High Point, Montville, Lenape, Randolph, Mount Olive, Roxbury, Sparta, Vernon, and Watchung Hills.

The judges were college admissions officers and professional artists from William Paterson University, Savannah College of Art and Design, and the University of Hartford Art School. They chose winners from eight categories: Drawing and Illustration in Color, Photography, Drawing and Illustration in Black and White, Pottery, Painting, Digital Media/Video, Sculpture/Crafts, and Mixed Media Open category.