1,000 East End Students To Present Work At Parrish Art Museum In 65th Year Of “Student Exhibition”

The Parrish Art Museum is celebrating the creativity of 1,000 young artists at the 2020 Student Exhibition from Saturday, March 7 through Sunday, April 19. This is a nearly 65-year tradition that exhibits youthful imagination and boundless creativity, which was enhanced this year by Artist-in-Residence workshops with three participating artists. The Artists-in-Residence include Irina Alimanestianu, Scott Bluedorn, and Bastienne Schmidt. The exhibition will open with two receptions on Saturday, March 7 that are free and open to the public. The Young Artists Reception (Pre-K through 8th grade) is scheduled from 1 to 3 p.m. and the High School Artists Reception is from 3 to 5 p.m.

“The Parrish looks forward to the enthusiasm for art making and the creativity expressed in the Student Exhibition every year. That energy is amplified this year by the Museum’s sixth Artist-in-Residence with three artists selected for Artists Choose Artists,” said Parrish Director, Terrie Sultan. “These hands-on workshops with practicing artists provide inspiring opportunities for hundreds of students.”

The participants featured in the Student Exhibition explore many traditional and non-traditional approaches to art-making. Students work with their art teachers and in art clubs ranging from Bellport to East Hampton and the North Fork. The mediums explored in the exhibition include painting, drawing, sculpture, photography and costume design. Over the years it is evident that there is an immense amount of imagination, enthusiasm and technical skills dedicated to this work.

Elementary and middle schools entered group projects, while high school artists are represented by both individual and collaborative projects. Artist Neill Slaughter, a professor of Visual Art at Long Island University, will present awards to recognize select high school seniors for their exceptional talent and skill. “Ones to Watch” honors will be presented to underclassmen.

The 2019 Student Exhibition. (Photo: Tom Kochie)

In addition to the nearly 300 group and individual works created by students in 37 private, public, and home schools, the exhibition features group works by over 300 students from Southampton and Hampton Bays Life Skills, and Bridgehampton, East Hampton, Southampton, and Tuckahoe Schools who participated in the residency.

All work created in the Museum at the residencies will be on view. Irina Alimanestianu discussed her use of spontaneity and material exploration in her art making process. Students collaborated on an abstract mural using different styles of mark making and experimenting with the application of paint, marker, crayon, and colored pencil. Scott Bluedorn addresses the importance of environmental activism, preservation, and sustainability practices in response to climate change. He has prompted classes to envision a future world and design innovative, eco-friendly environments and architecture. Bastienne Schmidt discussed color scheme and collage and led students to create their own organic and geometric shapes from collage papers that came together in a collective mural.

The High Schools included in this Student Exhibition include: Bellport, Bridgehampton, East Hampton, Eastport South Manor, Eastern Long Island Academy of Applied Technology, Hampton Bays, Mattituck High School, Miller Place, Pierson, Riverhead, The Ross School, Shelter Island, Shoreham-Wading River, Southampton, Westhampton Beach, William Floyd. The Elementary, Middle, and Home Schools included are: Bridgehampton School, Camp Flying Point Foundation, The Child’s Garden Play School, The Children’s School, Cutchoque East Elementary School, Dayton Avenue School, Eastport South Manor Junior Senior High School, East Hampton Middle School, East Quogue School, Greenport Elementary, Hayground School, Hampton Bays Middle School, On the Bay Waldorf Homeschool, John M. Marshall Elementary School, Oysterponds Elementary School, Peconic Community School, Raynor Country Day School, The Ross School, Sag Harbor Elementary, Shelter Island School, Shelter Island Early Learning Center, Southampton Elementary School, Southampton Intermediate, Southampton Montessori School.

The Parrish Art Museum is located at 279 Montauk Highway in Water Mill. For more information, call 631-283-2118 or visit parrishart.org.