Wells High School students receive 19 awards in regional portion of national art contest

Post date: Jan 18, 2019 1:1:19 PM

The Wells High School Art Department announced on January 15th that 12 students have received a combined total of 19 awards in the 2019 Maine Region Scholastic Arts Competition. Students won awards in the categories of Art Portfolio, Ceramics, Mixed Media, Painting, and Photography. These students are taught by art teachers, Vanessa White-Capelluti and Emily Knight. This year 1,100 pieces of art work from students from 50 schools around Maine were submitted for judging.

WHS recipients include: Braeden Baston (Silver Key in Painting and Honorable Mention in Photography), Hannah Bradish (Honorable Mention in Photography), Hannah Davis (Honorable Mention in Ceramics), Paul Ersing (Silver Key in Ceramics), Natalie Hannagan (two Honorable Mention awards in Painting), John Keniston (Gold Key for Portfolio with a collection of 8 works plus a Silver Key for Mixed Media and two Honorable Mention awards in Mixed Media), Chaya Lord-Rozeff (Silver Key and Honorable Mention for Photography), Isaac Michaud (Silver Key in Ceramics), Rylie Perron (Honorable Mention in Photography), Roslyn Soper (Gold Key in Photography), Savanah Wilder (Silver Key in Painting), and Sophia Zurlo (a Gold Key and Honorable Mention in Ceramics).

Three of these students, John Keniston, Roslyn Soper and Sophia Zurlo, along with many other Gold and Silver Key recipients, will now have their art work advance to the national level of competition in this contest. The work of these students will also be displayed in the Maine Region Scholastics Exhibition at the Maine College of Art (MECA) at 522 Congress Street in Portland from January 25 to February 9, 2019. Students represented in the exhibit and their art teachers will be honored at an awards ceremony at the college on February 9 from noon to 2pm for grades 7-10 and from 2-4pm for grades 11-12.

As part of Portland’s First Friday Art Walk, MECA will host a reception for the school’s student exhibition on Friday, February 2, 2019 from 5-7pm.

“The Scholastic Arts Competition is a very prestigious and competitive art competition,” commented a very pleased White–Capelluti. “Congratulations to our student award winners!”

A self-portrait from a Gold Key winning portfolio by John Keniston.

A Gold Key entry in Photography by Roslyn Soper titled “The Strings”.

Gold Key entry in Ceramics by Sophia Zurlo titled “Elephant”.