Young New Buffalo artists selected in 2022 Scholastic Art Awards

‘Simeon Says’ by Mylo Walters ‘Mochi’ by Aaron Berk

Alyssa Ruszkowski works on her ‘It’s a Small World’ piece

‘It’s a Small World’ by Alyssa Ruszkowski Aaron Berk works on his ‘Mochi’ piece

BY FRANCESCA SAGALA

Now, four New Buffalo young artists can say they have something in common with Robert Redford, Andy Warhol and Joyce Carol Oates. with it…. They add techniques they learned with value,” she said. For her “It’s a Small World” piece, Ruszkowski chose to showcase a bird’s eye view of a grouping of islands that she

Recently, the following New Buffalo Middle and High School students were selected in the 2022 Scholastics Art Awards: Mylo Walters, ninth grade, “Simeon Says;” Alyssa Ruszkowski, 10th grade, “It’s a Small World;” Camille Czech, 11th grade, “Best Friends;” and Aaron Berk, seventh grade, “Mochi.”

A virtual ceremony of the show will be held for the regional show of Southwest Michigan and Northwest Indiana at 11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 12, at www.southbendart.org.

There will also be an in-person open house from 12 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 5, at the South Bend Museum of Art. Guests must register for a free timed-ticket entry at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2022scholastic-art-awards-open-housetickets-228532846897.

The Scholastics Art exhibition will be open for in-person guests at the South Bend Museum of Art’s Warner Gallery from Feb. 5 to March 12 during museum hours.

Founded in 1923, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards includes a long list of several notable alumni (including the ones mentioned previously) in its winners’ circle, which can be found at www.artandwriting. org/awards/history.

Ashley Jager, art teacher at New Buffalo Middle/High School, said that achieving the honor can be very validating for the young artists, whether it’s at the national or regional level.

“It’s really about getting your artwork to the community and showing what you’ve done,” she said.

She said that this year’s entries stemmed from artwork that they’d done separate from class. Students took what they’d learned in art class and put their own spin on it, with the result being a heartfelt creation that’s truly their own.

Putting their unique stamp on their creations is what students need to ensure that they always “make art that they’re proud of,” Jager said.

“Everyone has their own different take unearthed via Google Earth, with a color palette that included reds, greens, blues and oranges. Czech, who’s in individual study and whose piece Jager said is her end of trimester final project, made a mixed media piece containing pieces of photos of her friends (using pastel and watercolor for their clothing) amidst a backdrop of pages from books.

Walters turned to a keychain-size skeleton for inspiration for his “Simeon Says” portrait. Aaron Berk took a pop art candy assignment to make his “Mochi” creation, using watercolor, pen and ink to bring out just “the right raspberry flavor,” Jager said.

The South Bend Museum of Art is the affiliate for the Scholastic Art Awards’ Northwest Indiana and Southwest Lower Michigan Region, which includes 18 counties.

Regional awards include the Gold Key (the highest level of achievement on the regional level), the Silver Key and Honorable Mention. This year, the students received honorable mentions.

Students submit digital images of their work, which is juried by a panel of jurors that include retired teachers, artists and museum curators.

Jurors judge a piece of artwork based on a uniform set of standards: its technical skill, its creative voice and the use of media.

Digital images of all Gold Key awards are sent on to National Adjudication in New York City, where award recipients at the national level are invited to participate in the awards ceremony held at Carnegie Hall.

The South Bend Museum of Art is located at 120 South Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in South Bend. It’s open Wednesday through Sunday, from noon to 5 p.m., and closed Monday, Tuesday, and on major holidays. Admission is free.

More student artwork at New Buffalo can be viewed at www.newbuffaloart.wixsite. com .

SPORTS

From the Bleachers

COLUMN BY KURT MARGGRAF IN CHICAGO

The National Football League

took another step toward cementing their hold as the number one sport in America today.

Two more evenly contested, hard fought, well played games, kept most sports fans glued to their television sets Sunday.

The first game pitted the young, upstart, Cincinnati Bengals against the powerful Kansas City Chiefs and the beginning of the game went as most expected it would. The Chiefs jumped out to a 21-3 lead and seemed poised to be on their way to an easy victory.

But just before halftime, the Bengals scored a touchdown and the Chiefs got stopped on the one yard line. This series of events completely changed the momentum of the game and the Bengals dominated the second half and won in overtime 27-24. Unbelievably, for the first time since 1988, the Bengals will appear in this year’s championship game. They have never won.

The second game Sunday was also a barn burner. The San Francisco 49ers travelled down to Los Angeles to take on the Rams and as expected, the game was close from beginning to end. San Francisco had emerged victorious the last few times they played, so they came into the game full of confidence even though the Rams were favored.

The game was tied at seventeen until the Rams kicked a field goal with one minute and forty six seconds remaining. The 49ers couldn’t form a last minute comeback so the Rams will move on to the championship game in two weeks to take on the Bengals.

The games leading up to the championship have all been great to watch. The level of play has been spectacular, and as much as I hate to admit it, light years ahead of my team, the Chicago Bears. I have enjoyed watching the rise of the Bengals, who many used to call the Bungles. Last season they only won four games and this year they’re in the championship game.

Hopefully the Bears’ new general manager and his coaching staff can find the right players and together they can turn the Bears around quickly. It sure would be nice if our team was one of the elite and competing for the championship in the next few years.

Parties for the big game will be upon us in a couple of weeks and a welcome diversion for those of us who dare to get together with some friends. Snowy, freezing weather and the Covid pandemic continue to take their toll on everybody so hopefully it can take our minds off of our troubles for a day or so.

As a final observation for this week, have you watched the movie “Don’t Look Up” on Netflix? I found it both amusing and alarming and thought it was quite a realistic look at the world we currently inhabit.

The Dalai Lama said, “Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.”

Talk to you next week. Peace, love, and happiness.