UNINTENTIONAL ART

By: Dylan Saunders

Getting distracted during class looks a bit different for NRHS artists than it does for most students. Those without artistic talents can produce a few stick figures and smiley faces in the margins of their papers. Artists, in comparison, draft visual masterpieces during math classes (or whenever else the inspiration strikes). Some of NRHS’s senior artists have provided examples and insight into their creative processes.

Ella Mordaunt remembers how easy it was to zone out and “end up drawing without even realizing” as early as elementary school. As a senior, Ella said that her mind never stopped wandering, but her aptitude for visual art has grown. Outside of her participation in ceramics, drawing, studio, the NRHS Art League, and the National Art Honors Society, Ella likes to flex her creative muscles during her other classes.

“Especially now,” Ella said, “I’m at home full time with many distractions.” Last January, Ella sketched some members of her math class (left).

“They didn’t move much, so I took that opportunity to draw them,” said Ella. In March, Ella created similar sketches of “something from each of the classes [she] was in” (right). A water bottle in German class, a Chromebook and dolphin plushie from English class, a faucet in science, and a door frame in math class were Ella’s muses for the day. Although photography is Emma Kelley’s medium of choice, she isn’t afraid to branch out when class gets a bit dull. Emma enjoys losing herself in the magical world of Harry Potter, something that shows quite clearly in her distracted doodles. “I had already read the Harry Potter series six times, and I was really bored,” said Emma about her drawing to the left. “I drew this in eighth grade during silent reading.” The sketch features a few easily recognizable characters, including Hagrid, Hermione, and Harry Potter. The building in the background mirrors the haphazard architecture seen in the live-action Harry Potter films.

Emma describes the cartoonish elderly gentleman pictured on the right as “my own version of Dumbledore.” Similar to her work in eighth grade, Emma drew inspiration from rewatching “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” the night before a science and sustainability lecture. This alternative Dumbledore, unlike his live-action counterpart, has a dark beard and carries a gem-tipped staff.

“My inspiration for these doodles is really just people,” said artist Gopala Ponadda. “I love drawing people; I think they tell a lot of stories and drawing them…feels natural.” Gopala sets himself apart from other artists with the unique creative process he applies to his sketches.

“When I doodle, I usually take one idea… and expand on it” on the following notebook pages, explained Gopala. For example, Gopala drew the person in the second image on his math homework. A few problems later, Gopala drew the simplified sketch (the third image).

Gopala refines his sketches much like a student editing sentences from their essay. The third sketch “broke down the structure of the face and .. used fewer lines to convey the same information” as the original image (second), said Gopala. The simplified sketch may look less detailed, but it shows how much more confident Gopala became with his linework.

The fourth image showcases one of the more interesting aspects of Gopala’s sketches. Unlike most in-class doodlers, Gopala doesn’t limit his inspiration to what he can see.

“I often draw things according to the music I’m listening to or things I hear in class,” said Gopala. He was listening to a podcast when he sketched the lower-left image. The podcast said something about insects and swords. “Those words stuck with me,” said Gopala, “and I sort of just drew what came to mind.” Gopala’s audio-to-art translation resulted in a sword with an intricate dragonfly guard and handle. Gopala attributes his skills to nearly a decade of artistic experience and growth.

As president of the National Art Honor Society, Noelle Kostyack finds herself constantly sketching and drawing during class. To her teachers, Noelle may appear to be zoned out. During this time, however, Noelle tests out new techniques and styles she finds online.

“I looked at TikTok trends and Pinterest boards,” said Noelle, “A lot of my inspiration... actually comes from Pinterest.” Noelle follows accounts that post human references. Noelle said she enjoys drawing models “that kind of stand out… or have an interesting feature.”

“For this woman, it’s her hair and her eyes,” said Noelle, referencing the young woman in the left hand photograph. The two people in the right photograph were not drawn from reference photos. “I was just sketching out some ideas. I just wanted to add something along the sweater lines and to the curly hair,” Noelle said, “I love the idea of short hair and female sketches...it gives...a very interesting definition of their facial features.” She pointed out that the two figures in the right image have facial features similar to hers. “Artists are more prone to draw faces that look like their own because we are used to seeing ourselves in the mirror everyday,” she explained.

Noelle excels at using whatever tools she has on hand to create art. She drew the images above with highlighters, a red pen, and a green marker “I’ve never really experimented with highlighter; it’s like a new medium,” she said. Noelle challenges herself to think outside the box when it comes to how she creates shading and highlights. Above her pre-calculus homework (left), Noelle hastily drew a pear and a sunset to help herself define how colors would be used in the following faces. The green marker creates shadows and dark, bold colors. The red pen provides definition. Two different colors of highlighter give Noelle all the shades she needs to make a math class masterpiece.