Huntington High School art students were magnificent at the Long Island Media Arts show at Five Towns College in Dix Hills, winning 20 Best in Show Awards in an exceptional display of talent and creativity.
The exceptional performance is even more impressive considering the event drew hundreds of entries from 27 metropolitan area high schools. The Huntington students are enrolled in courses taught by Pam Piffard-Williams (photography), Heather Swan (video and animation) and Kasmira Mohanty (graphic arts).
Irtana Deslouches won five Best in Show Awards at the LI Media Arts Show.
Huntington boasted three multiple Best in Show Award recipients, including Irtana Deslouches, who captured five Best in Show Awards in photography. Hannah Bailin won four Best in Show Awards in graphic arts and Dylan Willis garnered three Best in Show Awards in photography.
Huntington’s Megan Caramico (graphic arts), Sasha Koulakova (graphic arts), Arielle Harvey (photography), Colette Barron (photography), Oscar Bonilla (photography), Finn Malone (photography), Andy Ulloa (photography) and Griffin Bluemer (video) were also recognized with Best in Show Awards.
“I was overwhelmed by the responses to my artwork,” Ms. Bailin said. “It made me really happy that people were interested in what I do and how I make my art. I will remember this experience for quite some time and I hope many others take the opportunity to be a part of this show in the future.”
Participants in the show entered more than 300 photos and 70 videos. Huntington had seven students representing its photography program in the show along with four each in the video and graphic arts categories.
A contingent of 28 Huntington High School art students made the trek to the Dix Hills show. Many were underclassmen who show promise and who will surely vie in the 2020 competition.
Huntington photographers have a tradition of winning awards at the show, which Five Towns College has hosted for many years. With so many of her students garnering accolades, Mrs. Piffard-Williams was quite pleased.
“As always my students impressed me with their professionalism and the pride they presented their work with,” Ms. Piffard-Williams said. “Irtana [Deslouches] was our big winner with five Best in Show Awards. Everyone loved her work and wanted to know how it was done.”
A visit to the show proved to be time well spent for every member of the Huntington contingent. “Going to the LI Media Arts Show was a very eye-opening and enriching experience,” John O’Brien said. “Speaking with the artists offered great insight into the production and thought process behind their art and inspired me in many ways. My favorite part was learning different techniques from different artists and gaining inspiration from some of their works.”
Huntington’s filmmakers enjoyed the experience of showing their videos, which the show’s rules limited to five minutes each. “I’m glad that I could end my high school career on such a high note and I’m excited to see what I can do in the near future,” said Mr. Bluemer, who won a Best in Show Award for his work titled “Wizard Chase.”
The show annually attracts work from some of the state’s top young artists. “It was very fun and it was cool to see students’ videos from other schools and learn from them,” Megan Agrillo said. “Seeing other students’ projects was inspiring and gave me more ideas for my videos in the future.”
Huntington students appreciated the colorful and imaginative work they viewed while attending the show. “Looking at all the different photos that were on display was my favorite part of the show,” Isabella Toscano said. “It helped me to find inspiration for future photos.”
It’s not surprising that many of the Huntington students who went to the show were inspired by what they saw there. “Looking at the various works of art has made me very excited for my Advanced Placement project,” Bella Thompson said.
The show is coordinated annually by Eastern Suffolk BOCES’ arts in education program. Teachers can select the work of up to a dozen students each in both photography and computer graphics and five entries in video/computer animation. (Films can have multiple participants.)
Huntington freshman Ally Kustera was among the young video artists who made their way around the sprawling show. “I was inspired by seeing all of the upcoming filmmakers share their stories,” she said.
The show is typically one of the best in the metropolitan area for young artists to show their work and be recognized for excellence. Art teachers are asked to choose students “who have a serious interest in media arts and would benefit from a portfolio evaluation.”
