EAGLE EYE cover artist: maxx vail, senior
It’s the holiday season and Vista is lighting the way to kindness
Mountain Vista High School | 10585 Mountain Vista Ridge, Highlands Ranch, CO 80126
Vol. 17 Issue 2 12.18.17
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Senior Makenna Hollingshead performs the varsity poms jazz dance during the league championship competition. “I’m proud of the team because even through obstacles such as injuries they managed to pull through and give a great performance,” Hollingshead said. They placed second in the competition behind Ponderosa High School. Photo by Lauren Cowie
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Junior Grace Willie jumps for a rebound during a basketball game against Liberty High School. “The game was a challenge, but we played really well as a team to be able to win [the] game,” Willie said. The team beat Liberty, 62-47. Photo by Mikayla Olave
Senior Carter Dillon runs at the Nike Cross National meet in Portland, Oregon. “During the race, I knew it was going to be my last high school cross country race so I kept reminding myself of that and used that to do everything I was capable of,” Dillon said. “After the race, it just kind of hit me that it was all over and I wanted to focus on celebrating with my teammates and reflecting on all of our hard work.” The boy’s team placed third while the girls took sixth. Photo by Shayan Zarrin
Junior Simon May fights to take the ball in the game against Loveland High School.“It was our first game of the year and so we didn’t really know what our roles as a team were. We had to figure out what we needed to do,” May said. Vista defeated Loveland, 92-75. Photo by Gabe Barnard
Senior Jake Stein leads cheers during a volleyball game. “I joined MV Unit because I wanted to lead cheers,” Stein said. “Now, also I love being apart of MV Unit to promote involvement to many activities at Vista.” MV Unit’s new approach to support all of the clubs and activities at Mountain Vista restored its claim as the best student section in Colorado since 2014. Photo by Lexi Riga
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ornaments on the mvm christmas tree
mvm holiday traditions max hutto
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uring the holiday season, the student media program known as Mountain Vista Media (MVM) comes together to celebrate the holiday season. Members decorate ornaments, listen to holiday music, do Secret Santa and bond. Every year, MVM editors put together Secret Santa in order to celebrate the staff. “Every year we do Secret Santa. It’s a good way to bond with everyone and every year everyone looks forward to it,” senior Lauren Lippert, an editor, said. “Plus, it’s super cool to see everyone’s reactions when they open their presents.” Secret Santa is a tradition where
someone chooses a name from a hat and buys the other person a gift with a set price limit. “My favorite thing about Secret Santa is the surprise because you never know what to expect or what you’re going to get,” sophomore Madison Paul said. “And we’re getting to continue traditions.” Aside from Secret Santa, MVM also comes together to decorate ornaments. “This is the second year we’ve done this type of tradition,” Lippert said. “We did it my freshmen year and it was really fun so we decided to bring it back.” MVM hopes to spread holiday joy through these continued traditions.
madison paul, 10
getting to know the presidents judith sheahan
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n Nov. 27, U.S. Government classes presented projects on a president they chose to learn about. U.S. Govenment teacher Trae Skelton said he believed the project would allow students to focus on the specifics of presidency. “I think that providing them the chance to do their own projects [allowed] them to look into a specific administration,” Skelton said. “I got this idea from my colleagues and I liked the gallery idea for kids to express how they have learned and to see how other classmates learned,” he said. “A lot of these presidents have shaped our future so, that’s why it’s
important to know how and why.” Many students expressed their learning in a fun project, and made a poster about their president. “This project was a lot of work, but if you got an interesting president then it was fun to learn about,” sophomore Libby Frey said. “I got Thomas Jefferson. The most fascinating thing I learned about him was that he brought ice cream back from America. Students got a chance to engage while learning about the presidents and gained important information for about how presidents have impacted the United States.
ethan griggs, 12
sylvia byun, 12
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This is a self-portrait Vail created, titled “Maxx.” “It was almost a practice of sorts,” Vail said. “[It’s from] when I was first starting digital art.”
that’s about it
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savanah howard nside a quiet home office, five-year-old Maxx Vail sat in awe of his father’s lead pencil swiftly and deliberately bringing life to a seemingly useless piece of paper. The room full of new creations intrigued Vail and inspired him to pursue his own inventive ideas. Now a senior, he humbly — and happily — shares his work with the community. These moments in his dad’s office ignited Vail’s love for
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art, but also lead him to discover the boundless creativity flourishing within his own mind. Never taking a liking to math like his mom, he felt he had a different grasp on the world. Acknowledging the cliché, Vail reiterated he still feels he has a creative view of reality. “[My dad] has more of a creative mind, and I’ve always thought I had a creative mind, so I followed [him] into that,” Vail said. “I am an artist mainly because of the push my dad gave me.” Vail shared in his father’s love for creating cartoons, but he soon
began discovering his own artistic style and testing the waters of his abilities. Today, he describes his style as cartoon-oriented with hints of realism. He draws on his iPad using Procreate, a digital illustration app. “I love all of the different tools and styles you can achieve — all for virtually free, too,” Vail said. As he explores his love for art, he finds it shaping his personality and work ethic. “Whenever I start a new piece I always have the issue of not finishing it right then and there. I have to make sure it’s perfect all the time,
otherwise I won’t be happy with it,” Vail said. “I’m the hardest person on myself so that reflects on my work. I always want to make sure everything’s perfect. I want to get things done fast but also very well.” By his side, supporting his love for art and film, is girlfriend Hannah Yahashi, who is also a senior. “As Maxx has grown as a person his art style has evolved,” Yahashi said. “By taking more classes and discovering more about himself he was able to develop a more unique art style.” Vail spends a few hours to days
Vail smiles for girlfriend Hannah Yahashi, senior, on the light rail on his way back from 16th Street Mall in downtown Denver. “I’m proud of him for working so hard and pursuing his talents,” Yahashi said.
on projects, depending on size and depth. Vail doesn’t regularly submit his art to competitions or show in public, but he enjoys seeing people’s reactions to his work. He creates his masterpieces for his own enjoyment, but never passes up an opportunity to make someone’s day. “I like people to feel really happy or excited when they see it,” Vail said. “That’s kind of the biggest thing. I’ve always been influenced by people’s emotions. If people are happy by what they see, then I’m happy. It’s always astonishing to see people smile after seeing something I’ve worked so
hard on.” Even though he may not often display his artwork, he isn’t afraid of creating something for all to see. If you’ve come across the Vista lacrosse logo, you’ve already experienced Vail’s work first hand. “The piece I’m probably most proud of is the lacrosse logo because that was an opportunity I’ve never had before,” Vail said. “Now I see it on cars, laptops, hats and clothes.” Although Vail is passionate about art and excited by opportunities like the lacrosse logo, he plans to go study film at the Art Institute of Denver.
A more structured future is appealing to him, but he hopes his artistic abilities can give him an extra edge. “I always thought I would go into art and that was going to be my career, until I realized that artists don’t really have a clear career path,” Vail said. “I’ve always been super into film so I’m going to put art as a good talent or skill I have on the side to help if it could in any way.” Yahashi watched his transition to pursue film, but loves seeing him return to his iPad and create drawings inspired by his favorite shows.
“By doing his drawings inspired by his favorite movies and tv shows, he portrays his passion for both types of art,” Yahashi said. “I love watching him work because I can see the pure talent he has. It’s satisfying to see how all of the elements come together to create something really beautiful.” At the end of the interview, Vail was asked if there was anything he wanted people to know about him. He responded simply. “I think when it comes down to it,” he said. “I’m just kind of an art and film guy, and that’s about it.”
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