2023 Cushing Visual Arts Magazine

2023 Cushing Academy

VISUAL ARTS MAGAZINE

To create the glass work on the cover, Yundi “Wendy” Hu ’25 created multiple reference pieces, drafts, and prototypes.

2023 CUSHING ACADEMY VISUAL ARTS MAGAZINE

Each year, Cushing students produce an extraordinary number of creative pieces. This magazine highlights some of the artistic creations produced by our talented artists during the 2022-23 academic year. We commend our students for their hard work, talent, progress, and willingness to share their work with others.

We hope you enjoy their work as much as we do.

FACULTY

Deborah Gardner, Department Chair

Jeanine Eschenbach

Rebecca Cinclair

PHOTOGRAPHY

Deborah Gardner

Jeanine Eschenbach

Rebecca Cinclair

Philip Wexler

DESIGN

PB Dubois

MISSION STATEMENT

Cushing Academy exists for students and develops curious, creative, and confident learners and leaders.

SCHOLASTIC ART AWARDS

Cushing Academy 39 School Street

Ashburnham, MA 01430 (978) 827-7000 www.cushing.org

Copyright © 2023 Cushing Academy

All rights to illustration, photography, and text are reserved by Cushing Academy. Artwork

Cushing visual artists received 5 Gold Keys, 6 Silver Keys, and 3 Honorable Mentions in the 2023 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, the nation’s longest-running and most prestigious recognition program. Winning pieces are indicated throughout the magazine with the Scholastic Awards icon.

ADVANCED ART PORTFOLIO

Advanced art students who are in the process of preparing a portfolio of their work for college applications have the opportunity to participate in our Advanced Art Portfolio course. This rigorous year-long experience is for passionate and serious artists who have had success in one or more mediums and courses and allows them to develop a cohesive body of work that represents their overall achievement in art.

Monisha Chowdary ’23

Yue “Molly” Wang ’23

Chunming “April” Liu ’24

Mingrou “Remy” Dai ’23

In some ways, Art Portfolio is my habit of creating art given an academic form — it actually embeds into my schedule perfectly. I can go work on my pieces whenever I am free, instead of only being able to paint at a designated time.

I love the art teachers here. They’re always so supportive of my artistic pursuits, and I think with their help I’ve found a balance of learning more professional practices and techniques, while still pushing through my own ideas.

I like creating in different mediums. With acrylic paint and brushes, it’s like you really feel the process of construction — all the mixing of paints and the control of each and every stroke. It makes you more thoughtful. With animation, I like the process too. I like that I can tell much longer stories than with just a static image. There’s great entertainment there for me.

I love art — it is an integral part of my life. No matter what I do in the future, whatever major I take, or however heavy the workload is in that major, I’m going to keep art as a refreshing outlet for my life.

Next year, Remy will attend Case Western University and plans to concentrate in medicine.

Monisha Chowdary ’23

Yue “Molly” Wang ’23

Jihye Lee ’26

Ruby Meadow ’24

Jihye Lee ’26

Haoyu “Harry” Cai ’23

Adriano Baussan ’23

DRAWING + PAINTING

Cushing’s 40’X80’ art studio is filled with natural light and is the ideal space for students pursuing painting, drawing, architectural design, art history, and other artistic endeavors. The studio also serves as a space for art shows, demonstrations, and workshops.

Yundi “Wendi” Hu ’25

Wanlin “Karen” Li ’23

Yue “Molly” Wang ’23

Chaemin Lee ’25

Adriano Baussan ’23

My style is abstract. It’s heavily inspired by the concept of conveying messages — there is always a message in all of my pieces! Before I start painting, I try to decide what message I’m going to spread. Most of the time, it revolves around spreading something positive, especially in today’s world.

From a very early age, I was inspired by Picasso. I visited a few of his museums abroad and I fell in love with his color composition and work with shapes. Growing up, I stumbled upon Jean-Michel Basquiat, who is another of my favorite artists and inspirations.

My biggest inspiration is my country. I come from Haiti, which is a country very rich in art and culture. Art has always been around me in my home, restaurants, and in the streets — so I feel like it has been embedded in me. My aunt was able to really open me up to the world of art, helping me find my style and identity as an artist which was really big for me.

Next year Adriano will be attending the Rhode Island School of Design, and plans to major in painting.

Chaemin Lee ’25

Jimmy Monahan ‘26

Skyla Grenier ‘23

Yue “Molly” Wang ’23

METALSMITHING

Students learn to make jewelry and small sculptures using traditional metal fabrication techniques in our metalsmithing studio. After learning the basic skills, students are encouraged to create their own designs and processes. In addition, resources and opportunities for learning gemstone cutting, gemstone faceting, and stone inlay techniques are available.

Caroline Lilley ’23

Quinny Corbin ’26

Patrick Monahan ’24

Hirokazu Yano ’23

Carla Cluckie Catalan ’23

Chunming “April” Liu ‘24

Casey Wood ’24

Skyla Grenier ’23

Garrett Baker ’23

Brian Yandle ’26

Yuxin “Ella” Jiang ’24

Caroline Lilley ’23

Yuxin “Ella” Jiang ’24

Chunming “April” Liu ’24

I’m fascinated by the connection between pieces of jewelry and the people who wear them. Different pieces of jewelry represent different meanings — a ring resembles commitment while a necklace could be a family tradition passed down from generation to generation.

We start with a general topic in class and I’ll combine that with a personal concept to form a foundation for my work. I then decide which material and techniques are best for a particular design, dealing with challenges as they come up. Choosing the right metal and gemstones are an important part of the process, because they each express different emotions and personal meanings.

Generally, I get inspiration from nature because of my interest in pieces from the Art Nouveau movement. That [movement] has a lot of pieces inspired by elements such as butterflies, birds, and fish which I enjoy a lot.

FUSED + STAINED GLASS

Cushing’s glass program combines the art of stained glass with contemporary methods. Our students study glass cutting, soldering, and fusing and learn to create bowls, plates, platters, pendants, and lampshades.

Rahel Kutzner ’24

Quinny Corbin ’26

Jingyu “Crystal” Zhao ’23

Madelyn Soderquist ’26

Caroline Hall ’24

Yundi “Wendy” Hu ’25

I really like the texture of glass and how different textures cause different effects, especially when you combine them together. Glass is very fragile, so I make a lot of mistakes during my process. I enjoy the process of doing the work over and over again in order to get the final piece that I’m looking for.

At the beginning, I didn’t plan on doing a candlebox. Initially, I was going to do a 2D style piece with beaches, waves, starfish, and shells based on memories of my family when we went on vacation to Indonesia. But I chose a candlebox with textured glass so that it would reflect the light from different perspectives to give a vibe of comfort and joy.

When I get an inspiration, I start immediately drawing a draft and then I begin working on the real thing. My ideas become clearer as the process goes along. When I finished my first draft [for the large candlebox on the cover], it had 100 pieces to grind and cut! 3D glass is very difficult — I had to make all four pieces the same size then fit them correctly. Soldering them all together took multiple days.

I’m so grateful for getting the opportunity to showcase my work to others as well as to show others the potential that glass has to offer as an artistic piece. I hope it makes more people want to try working with glass.

Wenqian “Sophia” Zhang ’26

Lilly Corso ’23

Wenqian “Sophia” Zhang ’24

Arianna Pirro’26

Shuoyu “Vikey” Zhang ’26

Yukimura Takahashi ’26

Miranda Fraser ’24

Zachary Becker ’23

CERAMICS

Students interested in trying their hand at pottery and sculpture have the very best equipment and supplies at their fingertips in Cushing’s ceramics studio. The studio offers nine Brent wheels as well as a slab roller, an extruder, and several kilns. The large space provides plenty of room for instruction as well as individual work.

Arianna Pirro ’26

Fangqi “Felicity” Liao ’26

Mingyu “Alice” Gong ’23

Sara Moeller ’23

Josie McFadden ’24

Bryer Cagle ’24

Gardner Corrigan ’26

Jingyu “Crystal” Zhao ’23

Yenae Gebru ’23

Ryan Bertin ’24

Xaiokui “Daisy” Huang ’25

Lanea Fray ’24

Austin Herrera ’23

Ceramics has taught me a lot about the creative process. It has taught me about art itself and my thinking when it comes to my artistic work, so it has been integral to improving my own thought process.

When I’m making a piece, I’m always focusing on what shape I want to create. It can be easy to lose track during the creation process, so it’s really important for me to stay completely focused on my work. Once the work on the wheel is done and the piece has dried, I then go through the processes of trimming, glazing, and bisque firing. Choosing the colors for my pieces is another aspect that I have to put a lot of thought into.

I’ve been doing ceramics for four years [at Cushing], so each day in the studio I look forward to trying something new. The most challenging part is the work on the wheel. It requires my complete focus and I’m always trying to make it as perfect as possible. I’m a perfectionist! I’ve never had the opportunity to do ceramics at my previous schools so being here makes me want to try as many new things as possible.

Next year, Austin will be attending Boston University and plans to major in Marketing/ Operations Management.

Jack Costanzo ’23

Raphaël Marcoux ‘24

Sev Marcella ’24

Delaney Williams ’23

Alexa Hale ’24

Zach Rizzo ’23

Sarah Buchsbaum ’24

Monisha Chowdary ’23

Austin Herrera ’23

Lanea Fray ’24

Lydia Drake ’24

PHOTOGRAPHY

Cushing offers a variety of ways to explore photography. Using Canon digital cameras, students are taught the fundamentals of photography and the techniques to create interesting images. Editing is done on Macs with Lightroom and Photoshop, and final prints are made using professional Epson photo printers. Cushing also provides the rare opportunity to experience traditional black and white film photography. Students learn how to develop their films and create beautiful black and white prints in our group darkroom with ten enlargers.

Mauro Gonzalez Marin ’24

Regina Reyes Togno ’24

Ulrica Liu ’23

Hirokazu Yano ’23

Ulrica Liu ’23

I’m always trying to tell a story in all of my photos. I’ve had a lot of people tell me that my photography feels cinematic, like posters that you would see for a movie.

My work is about recording your moment of living in this world and the fact that you left an impact here. I want to help people capture their time on this earth — that is the concept for all of my photography.

When I’m selecting photos after a shoot, it can be challenging to decide which image is the best or which photo is the most telling of the story. Maybe there is a series of actions someone is doing in my photos and I can’t choose just one as the best because they’re all united.

There are so many different possibilities for capturing photos. Even after four years of photography at Cushing, I’m always trying to find new angles and other ways to take my work.

Next year, Ulrica will be attending the University of Washington and plans to major in media studies.

Hirokazu Yano ’23

Nia Foote ’25

Axel Favreau ’25

Ragan Hecht ’25

Zihan “Seven” Wang ’23

Maaya Higashi ’26

Zachary Hindle ’24

Nia Foote ’25

Yuhan “Allen” Zheng ’24

ARCHITECTURE

Grounded in a design-thinking approach, students experience problem-solving methods in preparation for tackling complex structure challenges, sculptural construction, and product design fabrication. Creative and imaginative three-dimensional form and space-making fosters an understanding of global historical context and design vocabulary and technique. Students also use strategies to conceptualize sustainable environments that reduce negative environmental impacts holistically.

Qianhe “Chelsea” Ding ’23

Sophie Elmes ’23

Yuchen “Mike” Zhu ’24

Yuchen “Mike” Zhu ’24

Jack Todey ’23

My interest in architecture comes from its endless amount of possibilities and its impact on our daily lives. When it comes to my work, I tend to design more practical pieces such as office buildings and houses.

My design process starts with inspiration, which can come from many different places. One example is when we went on a field trip to the Winthrop Center in Boston and got to see their blueprints for elevated offices. This inspired me to use that design concept in my next project.

Once I have an inspiration, I’ll draw a lessdetailed sketch of my idea. Then I start the process of turning that sketch into an actual structure. My work with architecture has helped improve my creativity in all aspects of life.

Next year, Jack will be attending the College of Creative Arts at Miami University and plans to concentrate in architecture.

Sophie Elmes ’23, Piper Boudreau ’23, Hadley Crosby ’24, Preston Briggs ’23

Davis Gillies-Holt ’23

Carter Gosinski ’24

DJ Hoffman ’23

Piper Boudreau ’23

Armand Hilmansyah ’23, Riley Cohan ’24

Ben Jutabha ’23

Hadley Crosby ’24

CUSHING ACADEMY

VISUAL ARTS PROGRAM

Cushing Academy is home to one of the most highly respected visual arts programs in secondary education. The Emily Fisher Landau Center for the Visual Arts offers the program the highest caliber, professional-level facilities for every medium offered.

The heart of our philosophy is to honor and enrich each student’s creative spirit while they develop the technical and critical skills needed to express themselves artistically. We prioritize an understanding and appreciation for the artistic process, develop skilled use of materials and methods, and encourage experimentation.

Classes are offered at beginner and advanced levels. At the core of every class is the desire to meet each student at their current level of development and enrich their knowledge and skill base to advance and grow to the next level. Classes are offered for the beginning student to develop a firm foundational artistic skill base, gain confidence in accessing, processing, and expressing their creativity, and understand the artistic expression of others. Advanced classes are offered in a variety of media to cultivate the creativity of the inner artist, challenge their intellectual and technical abilities, and develop the artistic confidence necessary to express themselves in a thoughtful and meaningful way.

CUSHING VISUAL ARTS PROGRAM

Students discuss work on display in the Winter Art Show. The Maude Bowen Carter Gallery in the Emily Fisher Landau Center for the Visual Arts hosts multiple shows a year, from works in progress to the annual Senior Show.

Architectural Design students take a field trip to visit with multiple Boston architecture firms, including a site visit to a multi-story apartment complex going up in Union Square, Somerville.

Photography students visit an exhibition at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts. Art classes regularly take field trips to local museums and galleries to enhance their coursework.

COURSE OFFERINGS

PURSUING AN ARTS CAREER

Many Cushing graduates matriculate to prestigious art schools and enjoy professional careers in the arts. Below is a list of colleges and universities attended by recent art department alumni:

Boston Architectural College

Boston University

Carnegie Mellon University

The New School/Parsons School of Design

Northeastern University

Massachusetts College of Art

Pratt Institute

Rhode Island School of Design

Ringling College of Art + Design

Savannah College of Art + Design

School of the Art Institute of Chicago

School of Visual Arts

Skidmore College

Stanford University

Syracuse University

Tufts University

Tulane University

University of California, Berkeley

University of California, Davis

University of California, San Diego

Wentworth Institute of Technology

Architectural Design

Drawing + Painting / Advanced Drawing + Painting

Metalsmithing / Advanced Metalsmithing

Photography / Advanced Photography (Digital + 35mm Film)

Art History

Advanced Art Portfolio Ceramics / Advanced Ceramics

Stained + Fused Glass