IsabellaRose Malone’s creativity knows no bounds. The Huntington High School junior is a wonderful young artist who is increasingly gaining notice across Long Island. The teenager is currently exhibiting one of her oil paintings at the Heckscher Museum of Art’s Long Island’s Best show.
Ms. Malone is a personable young woman. Articulate, thoughtful, hardworking and caring, she has developed many close relationships with classmates and teachers around the high school. She’s worked especially well with veteran art teacher Kristin Singer, who admires and respects the teenager.
Huntington junior IsabellaRose Malone.
“IsabellaRose Malone has been an outstanding student in the art department for three years,” Mrs. Singer said. “Isabella is both well-read and artistically creative. She loves learning in general and believes that the arts are her vehicle to communicate to the world. I have always been impressed with Isabella’s enthusiasm and diligence in the art room. Genuine, kind and thoughtful are just some of the words that come to mind when I think of Isabella. Her kindness towards others is seen daily. I truly appreciate her deep concern for the well-being of her classmates and the kindness she shows to her school community. It’s been a pleasure working with her over the years and seeing her develop into a mature artist and natural leader.”
Oil painting on canvas
The piece of Ms. Rose’s that is currently on display in the Long Island’s Best Young Artists exhibit at the Heckscher Museum of Art is an oil painting on canvas that the teenager titled The Center of the Universe.
“I’ve loved being Mrs. Singer’s student,” Ms. Malone said. “She’s extremely supportive and has helped me become more confident in my art. Mrs. Singer treats all of her students with such compassion and is constantly helping her students with any problems they have. I enjoy coming her class every day and being given projects that help me expand my horizons as an artist. I’m extremely excited to also be given the opportunity to be her intern next year.”
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.”
Ms. Malone is a serious artist. She approaches her work with a sense of professionalism and it shows. She spends time thinking about what she wants to create and then perfecting it.
“In Schonzeit’s Tangerine Sweet, the artist distorts the perception of a simple fruit,” wrote Ms. Malone in her artist’s statement. “While painting in such extraordinary detail, one might mistake his style for a photograph. However, by drastically increasing the size of the subject matter, he shows how easily the viewer can be fooled into believing that this tangerine is so much more than a simple painting. Thus by creating an artwork, where a mundane, small object becomes utterly massive; a simple tangerine begins to receive a power it would otherwise never have in reality.”
“An enjoyable high school career”
A member of GSA, the French National Honor Society and the Et Cetera literary magazine staff, Ms. Malone is enrolled in Regents US History and English, Forensics, Psychology, Honors Pre-Calculus AB, Honors French 4 and the portfolio development class within the studio arts program.
“I feel like I’ve had an enjoyable high school career, where the art department has help me grow and develop my talent and I’ve been to become friends with a diverse group students,” Ms. Malone said. “I’ve enjoyed the classes I’ve been able to take and the teachers have all been very friendly and helpful.”
Ms. Malone attended the opening reception of the Long Island’s Best Young Artists exhibit at the Heckscher Museum last Saturday night. She basked in the glow of being one of a select group chosen to display their artwork at the show.
“In my piece, The Center of the Universe, my subject matter manages to hold oppressive power over us all: the human ego,” wrote Ms. Malone in her artist’s statement. “I wanted to show that in reality, no matter how big we see ourselves, we are truly small when compared to the universe. Nevertheless, even if our ego hides the reality of how small we are, I also wanted to bring attention to the idea that even if we are small, we are still significant. By observing the people around you, one can also observe the defining features and intricate details of a person that would have otherwise been overlooked. Despite our insignificance when compared to something as large as the universe, we are still just as vivid and intricate, no matter our size; just like each flowering fruit, grain of sand or twinkling star in our universe.”
The Heckscher Museum is open Wednesday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Town of Huntington residents are admitted free on Wednesdays after 2 p.m. and on Saturdays before 1 p.m. Proof of residency is required for free admission.
According to its website, The Heckscher Museum of Art was founded in 1920 by industrialist August Heckscher. 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. Visit www.heckscher.org or call (631) 351-3250 for more information.
