What began as a child's activity of drawing and painting has evolved into a celebration of artistic expression.

Last month, lower Alexandria Bryan, of Stratham, NH, and Emma Glennon '10, of Greenland, NH, were among this year's 50 high school Scholastic Art Award winners honored in a national exhibit sponsored by The U.S. Department of Education and the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities. "It's the most prestigious award/recognition that I've seen happen in my time here at Exeter," says Art Instructor Tara Misenheimer, who taught and guided Glennon in 2 Scholastic Arts competitions.

First-time entrant Bryan says her art instructor encouraged and showed her the way to artistic notoriety. "I did not know about the Scholastic Awards until last year. My [awarded] painting is called Shadow Play, and it won a Gold Key at the regional level and a Gold Medal at the national," she says. Remarkably, Bryan's awarded painting was her 1st attempt at painting on canvas. Following the ceremony in Washington, D.C., she and her father explored the Smithsonian museums, her favorite part of the trip.

While Glennon was excited about being named for the national exhibition, she also felt recognized as an artist during the Scholastic Arts ceremony in New York this past summer. "Being on stage at Carnegie Hall made me feel somewhat validated as an artist. I had never experienced that kind of recognition before. . . . I felt for the first time that art could be something more meaningful than a hobby," she says.

Glennon always liked art but says she didn't get serious about it until her lower year, when she took Painting I. "I didn't take another art course until spring of my senior year, but I painted at least a few hours each week for those 3 years." Her Arnold's Candies painting won a national Scholastic Arts Gold Medal. "I was incredibly excited to hear about the exhibition in D.C. I thought I was done with all things Scholastic, so [it] came as a complete surprise (and a very good one). The thought that everyone who passes through the Department of Education will see my painting is pretty amazing," Glennon says.   

Both Bryan and Glennon continue to paint; Bryan plans to enter another work this year in the Scholastic competition. 


Read about Exeter's Art Department…
Learn more about the 2010 Scholastic Art Awards…
Learn more about the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards at the U.S. DoED and PCAH. . .


— Famebridge Witherspoon