Five students in Ms. Martha DeAmbrose’s Upper School 2D Arts class created pieces for a student-based art exhibit titled “Silence.” The “Silence” prompt came from the Tampa Museum of Art’s Youth Council. Johanna Kunz ‘23, a member of the Youth Council, said, “My favorite part about the “Silence” project was brainstorming for ideas and trying to fit the theme into a cohesive piece. With the Silence prompt, you can go very literal or very creative and vague, connecting it to current events or even what's going on in your head. For me, it was figuring out what interests me the most.” She went on to say, “After quarantine and summer, I was really ready to go back to school and have something to work on, and getting to paint everyday was truly a great way to work out any unmotivation and worries. Art lets me center my thoughts and clear my mind so I can be the best student I can be for the rest of the day.”
Students are encouraged to visit the Silence Art Show in the Smith Black Box Theater lobby to view the artwork on display for the next few weeks.
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Meagan Lukavec ‘21 “This photograph was taken from my backyard to express silence. The still water along with the freshly cut grass represents the calmness and peacefulness of silence. My goal for this project was to capture the simplicity and beauty of silence in everyday nature.” |
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Johanna Kunz ‘23 (add image of gymnastics piece) “After learning about the USA Gymnastics Scandal, I was appalled at the true physical, mental, and sexual abuse these athletes have endured for decades. These girls not only had the pressure of representing their country on their shoulders, but were also pressured to stay silent by their sport, their coaches, and even their doctors. Even with the pressure from everyone to stay silent… these athletes show even more strength by how they make their voices heard.” |
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Lily Bailey ‘21, “Alone” “I like to use rabbits as a stand-in for myself. They’re the quintessential prey animal, easily frightened and very fragile. As someone with an anxiety disorder, it resonates with me. In this piece, I’ve tried to portray feelings of isolation and uncertainty.” |
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Nico Farmer ‘22 “The hands represent people in the world coming together to figure out the problems of racism, inequality, poverty, life vs. choice, gender equality and global warming. The broken mirror represents breaking the silence of these problems in society by placing the concepts on the mirror. The reflection of the viewer in the mirror is supposed to show that even though these problems may not affect you on an everyday basis that you will realize they are in fact affecting and shaping your life in ways that you may not be aware of. These problems need to be addressed by each of us in order for humanity as a whole to progress and continue in a forward direction.” |
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Omar Hawat ‘21 “My interpretation of silence was the idea of ‘serenity,’ but also somewhat about the eeriness of the concept. As a result I have compiled a collection of photos that I have taken over the years as I traveled throughout the world, each one representing a different “kind” of silence because everybody has their own definition of tranquility. Each photo is meant to represent a different idea of how silence/serenity/lucidity can be interpreted, whether that is through art, religion, nature, music, architecture, etc. I have also added a meditating figure to some of the photos in order to exemplify how silence can come in many forms and is different for every person.” |
