Huntington HS Artists Among Long Island's Best

HUNTINGTON, NY — Huntington High School student-artists' talent was recognized.

Five students have had their pieces chosen for display at the Heckscher Museum of Art’s 27th Long Island’s Best Young Artists exhibition this spring, the Huntington School District announced.

Huntington’s Dyana Augustin, Aislyn Franciscovich, Annika Galvin, Sebastian Ramirez and Sophia Tine are among the top Long Island artists with work tapped for the exhibit. The show opens April 29 and runs through June 4. A virtual show of the artwork will debut on the Heckscher Museum’s website on May 6.

The annual exhibit features "extraordinary works" of art created by Long Island high school students. Participants from 77 high schools submitted 553 works of art for jurying this year with 91 selected by Heckscher Museum Curator Karli Wurzelbacher and guest artist and juror Samantha Dominik.

Several Huntington student-artists will be presented with special awards at the exhibit’s opening ceremony, scheduled for 5:30 p.m. April 29.

Ramirez won the Renzo and Lynette Bianchi Scholarship Award, which includes a $350 stipend. Tine has claimed the Fred Pilkington Award of Achievement, which carries a $200 stipend. The two teenagers are both studying with Huntington High School art teacher Kasmira Mohanty.

Franciscovich garnered an honorable mention award, of which just a small number were presented. Franciscovich, Galvin and Augustin are all studying under high school art teacher Kristin Singer.

Huntington students Victor Chavez-Diaz, Gerard Cruz-Jandre, Valerie Jarma, John Song, Isela Jimenez-Guevara, Vince Garofalo, Molly Heffernan, Iverson Menjivar-Quintanilla, Alison Cordova, Anna Famiglietti, Fiona Brosnan, Jamyn Husselbeck, Koi Crowder, Grey Hodgkison and Charlotte Wesnofske also submitted artwork for consideration.

"This juried exhibition provides select students with the unparalleled opportunity to exhibit their artwork in the museum and connect with the broader Long Island community," according to the Heckscher Museum. "The quality of artwork is exceptional and delivers a professional-level show in a broad range of media, styles, and subjects. Each student has written an artist statement describing their inspiration and artistic process; an image of the ‘inspiration artwork’ is also provided to deepen visual connections."

Participants in the Long Island’s Best initiative choose a work of art in the Heckscher Museum’s collection as the starting point for their own creative process. The teenagers then interpret the respective pieces through their own art.

"The quality of the artwork is exceptional and delivers a professional-level show," exhibit organizers said.

Each of the pieces in the exhibit is accompanied by an artist’s statement, which explains "the thought process and artistic journey from conception to completion," according to organizers.

A thumbnail image of the artwork on view in the museum that inspired the student work is also featured.

The Heckscher Museum of Art was founded in 1920 by industrialist August Heckscher, according to the museum's site. The collection is devoted to 19th and 20th century European and American art. In addition, the Museum owns and maintains the Dove/Torr cottage, the home of famed American artist Arthur Dove and his artist-wife Helen Torr.

"Long Island’s Best: Young Artists at the Heckscher Museum is the only juried exhibition on Long Island that offers high school students the opportunity to show their work in a museum," according to organizers. "Each year, students in grades 9 -2 are invited to create a work of art inspired by artwork shown in the museum during the school year and to submit it to the jurors."