s through art, fashion year ago. I’ve always been really into environmentalism. I was thinking I was going to become an environmental lawyer. Thinking about it now, absolutely not. I could never get through law school, but I am planning to minor in sustainability still. I think learning about all of that really affected my style too, because I started to move away from fast fashion, and now I pretty much only thrift all my clothes,” Somraty said. Somraty thrifts most of her clothing. “I will buy from non-thrift stores, if there’s a hole in my wardrobe that I need to fill and it’s holding me back and I haven’t been able to thrift it, but I literally get like a high when I find a cool, unique piece at a thrift store,” Somraty said. Somraty appreciates thrift stores for their sustainability -- but also for their own impact and inspiration on herself. Also, Somraty finds inspiration and appreciation in her own peers. “I think getting into that completely transformed my style. I feel like it is so hard for me to really put together a good outfit and wear it to school, like I just need to be wearing sweats or jeans to school. There’s so many people that just come to school everyday, and they’re just like serving every single day, like they’re just giving. I am lowkey so jealous of those people, because it is so hard for me to really put together a good outfit and wear it to school. I think it’s something about the environment and school versus the weekend. I have a completely different style at school than I do on the weekends,” Somraty noted. Senior Rachel Sebastian-Asbed is another notable artist of Webster Groves. Throughout high school, her pieces have stretched across the art hallway. Like others, Sebastian-Asbed’s inspiration for art comes from all around hers, but her own experiences and relationships inspire her the most.
Early April 2022 | Feature
“What inspires me is my experiences and mostly my interactions with people. Just how I can connect with people I don’t know through art. Just thinking about the importance of small moments and trying to capture that essence through pencil drawings,” Sebastian-Asbed said. Sebastian-Asbed’s favorite art forms are drawing and painting, but about her favorite part about art itself, “My favorite thing is probably the subjectivity of it. You can make anything you want and have it be interpreted in so many ways, but also you don’t have to listen to what others say because it’s your depiction of whatever you were inspired by,” Sebastian-Asbed said. Sebastian-Asbed appreciates art for its inclusivity and how universal it is. “It’s also very therapeutic and inclusive. It gives people, whether it be me or someone else, a way to express themselves and communicate if they have trouble doing so. Particularly, I think art done by artists with special needs is amazing, because since some can’t accurately talk about what’s going on with them, the only thing they can use is art. It’s just so universal,” SebastianAsbed said. Sebastian-Asbed is no stranger to awards or achievements for her art. “I was an All Write artist. I’ve won a Silver Key in the Scholastic Art and Writing competition for a portfolio. I got second place in the Lindenwood art competition. One piece of mine was chosen to represent the third congressional district in a competition where my piece won our Missouri state districts. It goes to Jefferson City and stays there for a while,” Sebastian-Asbed shared. Senior Harper Kehl, another rising artist, showcases herself and her experi-
ences through photography and other mediums. Whether it be vibrant colors, patterned fashion pieces or through the snap of a lens, Kehl and her personality are most known through her art and the style of it. Kehl’s favorite form of art is photography. “I really love photography, because I feel like it’s so inspiring to be able to capture moments that you can look back on forever. I think why I take so many photos is because I love being able to look back on a certain moment in time,” Kehl said. “Photography is such a good way of capturing how you feel in a period of time,” Kehl said. About why she loves art, “It’s open to everyone’s interpretation. I also think art is a really good way of expressing yourself, whether you are doing it intentionally or not. In the end, you always end up learning something new about yourself,” Kehl shared. Kehl finds inspiration through her friends and the sounds around her. “My friends and my music and everything around me inspire me. I also think what influences me the most is my emotions and how I’m feeling when I create art,” Kehl shared. “I have been working with ceramics a lot lately, creating shoes out of clay and working with different glazes. Alongside this, I have also been experimenting with different lighting techniques and exposures with film photography,” Kehl said, about her current creative process. Kehl’s art is well known and appreciated throughout Webster Groves. “Last year, Anna Barr and I constructed a nine foot monolith that we moved around Webster, including city hall, the Webster Groves sculpture garden and even right here in front of the high school on Selma,” Kehl said.
Art by Rachel Sebastian-Asbed and Harper Kehl
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