2025 Graduation Program Cover Design

Congratulations to Nora Berisha (Class of 2025) for creating the cover design for the 2025 Graduation Ceremony Program. Her graduation cover, featuring a dock stretching toward a glowing sunset, symbolizes each graduate's journey ahead. The dock invites students to step into the unknown with courage, while the sunset marks both an ending and a new beginning. Its warm tones inspire reflection on past growth, and the solitary path suggests the importance of individuality. The calm water and natural setting remind us that growth takes time and comes with quiet strength. Altogether, the image captures a hopeful, transitional moment filled with possibility. Way to go, Nora! Special thanks to Mrs. McCoy, Ms. Akre, and Mrs. Nuzzo for their efforts in ensuring the project's success!

Art I Dream Room Project

The following gallery showcases the final drawing projects of Art I students, who designed their dream room using two-point perspective. Two-point perspective is a technique that allows artists to depict three-dimensional space on a two-dimensional surface, incorporating mathematical concepts like lines, planes, angles, and similarity. This method helps artists understand visual space and connect mathematics with visual art. The drawings were evaluated on perspective accuracy, detail, neatness, and originality.
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Ceramics II Spring 2025

This gallery displays Ceramics II student's work, demonstrating their project-based skills acquired in Ceramics I. From clocks to plates and birdhouses, Ceramics II fosters creativity using this three-dimensional medium.


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Drawing II: "My Theme" Drawing

In Drawing II, students were challenged to create an Advanced Placement Prep drawing for their final project, creating cohesive artworks from original resources based on their chosen theme. This unit focused on developing a main topic and subtopics, where each piece reflected a subtopic of the overarching theme. Throughout this process, students advanced their composition, color theory, and drawing techniques while learning to express complex ideas visually. This exercise not only sharpened their artistic skills, but also prepared them for the demands of AP Studio Art.


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2025 Student of the Semester

The Visual Arts Department is proud to recognize Sophia Solis as Student of the Semester for her exceptional artistry, dedication, and creativity. Sophia is focused and positive, and draws daily in her sketchbook, even creating and gifting unique characters of her classmates—some of which are now displayed in the art room. Her strong skills in both realism and character design have resulted in multiple high-quality “Varsity” pieces and two spots in the inaugural Little Ten Art Show. Sophia’s commitment sets a high standard and inspires those around her. Way to go, Sophia!

An Introduction to the Art of Perspective Drawing

During the spring semester, Art I students were introduced to perspective drawing, a technique used to create the illusion of three-dimensional space on a two-dimensional surface. Students developed their skills through lessons on one and two-point perspective. Utilizing shading techniques learned in the first semester, they enhanced the three-dimensional effect, adding depth to their artwork.


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Painting II Album Covers

Students in Painting II recently completed a creative and personal project in which they designed and painted original album covers inspired by a song of their choice. The assignment challenged them to visually reimagine their selected song, incorporating painted imagery and handwritten or stylized lyrics into the final composition. In addition to exploring connections between music and visual art, students also integrated a Spotify song code below their artwork. This unique feature allows viewers to scan the code using the Spotify app and listen to the song that inspired the design, creating an interactive experience. The project encouraged students to think deeply about mood, symbolism, and visual storytelling while experimenting with painting techniques and composition.
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Agenda Book Design Contest

Students in Computer Graphics class recently participated in a design contest to create the front and back covers of the school’s agenda book—a student handbook that includes a calendar and school rules. Using skills learned in class, students incorporated strong typography, school branding, and the required anti-bullying pledge into their designs. The winning covers were selected by a panel of office secretaries, the principal, and superintendent. The following designs are finalists in the contest, showcasing the creativity of our students. Check back to find out who won!


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Restaurant Take-out Boxes

Students in the Computer Graphics class recently put their design and typography skills to work in a creative product design challenge—developing take-out boxes for fictional restaurants aimed at adult consumers. Each student randomly selected a restaurant name from a hat and built a brand identity from the ground up, including a custom logo, typography, contact info, and social media links. They designed every panel of the box—from top to bottom—with careful attention to detail and visual unity. The final results showcase both technical skill and creativity, and students had a great time bringing their imaginary restaurants to life!


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Painting II's Biggest Challenge Yet

The Painting II class represents the most experienced artists at NCHS, having completed the prerequisites of Drawing I, Drawing II, and Painting I. I often refer to them as the "Varsity Starting Lineup" because of their dedication, skill, and artistic growth.

For this project, they faced their most ambitious challenge yet: creating an "epic", "large-scale", "museum-quality" painting of personal significance. No small feat, but they rose to the occasion, producing the masterworks you see here. Each piece reflects not only their refined technical abilities but also deep personal meaning. These paintings, measuring up to 18" x 24", are statement pieces—worthy of a future place of honor in their homes, whether in an entryway, foyer, or gallery wall! Their work speaks for itself—bold, expressive, and undeniably Varsity-level!


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Drawing II: Dictionary Design Drawing

In Drawing II, students are challenged to create a cohesive artwork based on four words that share the same letter. This exercise encourages students to explore creative ways of combining different visual elements into a single piece of art. By focusing on a specific set of words, students are required to think outside the box and stretch their imagination to produce an artwork that tells a story or conveys a particular emotion or message.

Through this exercise, students practice their skills in composition, color theory, and drawing techniques while also developing their ability to convey complex ideas through visual art. This exercise serves as valuable practice for students pursuing AP Studio Art, where they will be challenged to produce a portfolio of artworks that demonstrates their mastery of various mediums and techniques.


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Cereal Box Design Project, Computer Graphics Class

Students in the Computer Graphics class recently put their typography and design skills to the test with a fun and engaging product design project—creating their own cereal boxes! Each student randomly selected a fictitious cereal name from a hat and brought it to life by designing a unique mascot, crafting custom typography, and carefully considering the color scheme, layout, and spacing between visual elements. Every detail, from the front and back panels to the sides, top, and bottom, was thoughtfully designed to create a unified and visually compelling package. As you can see from the results below, the students’ creativity truly shined, and they had a fantastic time bringing their cereal brands to life!


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Inaugural LTC Art Show!

Congratulations to Jaxon Collins, Scarlett Hopkins, Easton Kempiak, Jacob Seyller, Hannah Severson, Evan Sittler, Sophia Solis, Kaden Stanford, Daniel Venegas, and Rylie Young for participating in the inaugural Little Ten Art Show, held on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, at Somonauk High School.

The event featured over eighty works of art from eight high schools in the Little Ten Conference. This non-juried exhibition coincided with the Little Ten Band Festival, culminating in an evening band performance.

Stay tuned, as this event is sure to grow in the coming years! Next year’s host will be Serena High School.

Special Thank you to Mr. Ulrich, Mrs. Gummerson, Mr. Langhoff, Mr. Benson (Somonauk), LTC Principals, Ms. Kempiak (Somonauk), and Ms. Symoniak (IMSA) for making this show possible!

View selections from the show through this Google Drive Link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1G450X3GRXBEBsc7fb-H6Y7K8tOorYN2v?usp=sharing

Computer Graphics Class Update

Students in Computer Graphics class have been busy this semester exploring advanced digital techniques, including AI-powered tools, within a photo editing program. From restoring old photos to designing surreal landscapes in the Field of Dreams project and experimenting with digital typography, students enjoyed pushing their creative boundaries through healthy class competitions. The projects displayed here represent a selection of their efforts. Read more about our class here!
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Art I Portrait Gallery

In Art I, students took on the challenge of painting self-portraits using a six-step color value scale, exploring the lightness and darkness of a single color. Working exclusively with primary colors, black, and white tempera paint, they carefully mixed their own value steps to create depth and contrast. The final portraits resulted in stunning, dynamic likenesses that demonstrate students' mastery of value, contrast, and precision. This project not only strengthened their painting skills but also encouraged a deeper understanding of color relationships. Well done to all our talented artists!

Drawing II: Mixed Media Grid Drawing

In Drawing II, students were challenged to create a cohesive artwork using a variety of art materials. This exercise expanded students' skills in the use of graphite, colored pencil, ink, scratchboard, paint marker, watercolor, and acrylic paint.

Through this exercise, students practiced their skills in composition, color theory, and drawing techniques while developing their ability to convey a single image. This exercise serves as valuable practice for students pursuing AP Studio Art, where they will be challenged to produce a portfolio of artworks that demonstrate their mastery of various mediums and techniques.


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Painting II Self-portrait Study

Students in Painting II recently completed a self-portrait study, focusing on painting individual facial features such as eyes, noses, mouths, and ears. Working from reference photographs, they began with precise drawings before carefully matching skin tones, light, and shadow to create life-like paintings. Each portrait fragment was then mounted on black matte board and elevated using foam core, adding an interesting three-dimensional effect. This project challenged students to closely observe and capture their own likenesses, and they rose to the occasion with incredible skill and dedication, as you can see in their impressive final pieces!

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Art I Complementary Target Paintings

Complementary colors, positioned opposite each other on the color wheel, create the strongest visual contrast. To explore this effect, Art I students reimagined the classic target design, incorporating their own creative twists. Each section was carefully painted with alternating tempera hues, requiring precision, layering, and smooth application. The works showcased here represent the "Top Targets" from each class, highlighting both technical skill and artistic vision.

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Scenes from The Art Room: Fall 2024

Thanks to Bella Dierzen’s photography first semester, we have preview photos for the yearbook that highlight our students’ efforts! Below: Design classes displays their 3-D projects, Art I students complete their final drawings, and painting students work on landscapes. Thank you, Bella!


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2024-2025 Ceramics I Class

The gallery showcases the creations of first-year ceramics students, pinch projects-iPhone speakers, wheel thrown projects, and coil building works. These initial projects serve as the building blocks for further skill development in Ceramics II, where students have the freedom to pursue more diverse projects.


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Drawing I Faces

Students in Drawing I class dove into the fundamentals of facial anatomy, studying the intricate details of eyes, noses, mouths, ears, and the basic proportions of the human face. The results, showcased here, reflect their hard work and observation skills. Each sketch demonstrates their phenomenal ability to capture the essence and proportions of the human head with remarkable precision. Well done to all our talented artists!
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Art I Final Drawings

The following pencil drawings are the end result of a unit by first-year art students. Many of these students explored shading for the first time, and with dedication and practice, they produced impressive work!

The class brought in their own photographic resources to work from, and utilizing the techniques they learned throughout the semester, they were able to contour draw and reproduce the highlights and shadows in their images. The end product is a collection of realistic drawings that showcase the progress and development of the students' new-found talent!


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Exploring Photocopy Transfer in Acrylic Painting

Painting students recently explored an innovative collage technique using photocopy transfer with acrylic paint. This method takes advantage of a unique property of photocopy ink, which adheres to acrylic surfaces.

The process began with students selecting and creating photocopies of imagery they wished to incorporate into their artwork. Using clear acrylic paint, they painted over the photocopies. Once the paint dried, the paper backing was carefully removed, leaving behind a thin, flexible ink layer reminiscent of a "window cling."

These delicate transfers were then integrated into vibrant background paintings that the students had prepared beforehand. The combination of transferred imagery and hand-painted elements resulted in mixed-media collages.

This project not only taught students about the interaction between different materials but also encouraged them to think creatively about layering and composition. Each piece tells its own story through this unique blend of photocopy transfer and acrylic painting techniques!


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2024 Art Student of the Semester

The Student of the Semester program honors students who exhibit strong character traits such as a positive attitude, respect for others, dependability, hard work, and self-discipline. The Visual Arts Department is proud to recognize Jacob Seyller as Student of the Semester for his exceptional performance and personal standard of excellence. Along with demonstrating extraordinary focus in class, which has resulted in award-winning artwork, Jacob undertakes art commissions outside of class and contributes photography to the Newark website. His dedication to supporting both his teacher and classmates makes him a truly deserving recipient of this honor. Congratulations, Jacob!

Drawing I Colored Pencil

Students in our Drawing I class recently wrapped up a unit focused on colored pencil techniques. As part of their exploration, they created detailed drawings of apples on toned paper.

This project emphasized the art of layering, with students carefully building up multiple layers of colored pencil to achieve smooth blends and realistic tones inspired by reference photographs. The classes hard work and attention to detail are evident in the examples below!


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Ceramics Class Animal Box Project

The Ceramics I Animal Box Project involved constructing slab boxes with lids featuring realistic animal sculptures. The sides of each box depicted the animal's environment through sculpting, texture, and form, with students drawing inspiration from photographs, 3D modeling software, or physical models. The finished boxes were painted using an antiquing method to enhance highlights and shadows, creating a natural, lifelike appearance. This project allowed students to refine their skills in sculpting, texture creation, color theory, and design while deepening their understanding of animals and their habitats. By combining creativity, craftsmanship, and an appreciation for nature, the Animal Box Project highlights the artistic talent and dedication of our students.


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