Senior Grace Liszka has always been interested in art as a hobby, but her passion for it grew significantly after taking AP Studio Art her senior year with Mrs. Christine Sweeney as her instructor. 

“Having a class that is one hour of just pure art that is mostly independent is something that puts me in my artistic element. Now that I have that class, I can truly put time and effort and full potential into my art,” Grace said. 

Many of Grace’s pieces are very personal, explicitly designed to open the work for viewer interpretation. Grace’s favorite works require analysis and layering, and her favorite medium is mixed media, as it allows her freedom to create layered and textured appearances to her works with different materials. 

Grace participated in the 4-H Art Club and competed in Odyssey of the Mind, in which she designed and created sets, costumes and props. 

“Grace has reached a point in her artistic growth where fearless exploration, risk-taking and her technical abilities are in sync with one another, revealing a synthesis of materials, processes and ideas. Her work is very expressive and engaging,” Mrs. Sweeney said. 

Grace recently won a Gold Key award for Scholastics and also received an honorable mention. She has also completed a commissioned mural at the Sparkomatic Cafe and Talkhouse in Milford. Grace plans to major in fine arts in college. 

“Art can be such an amazing way to express emotions and to deal with things that you have gone through in life, and art does not have to be based on skill and can be amazing based on its meaning,” Grace said.

“And as Todd Chavez once said, ‘isn’t the point of art less what people put into it, and more what people get out of it?’”