Commack Student Artist Featured in Heckscher Art Exhibit

Commack High School twelfth grader Deborah An had her work featured in the Heckscher Museum of Art’s Long Island’s Best: Young Artist at the Heckscher Museum 2022 exhibit. Her submitted piece was an acrylic-on-canvass work entitled “Tick Tock.”

Deborah’s piece was among 399 works submitted to the exhibit from 55 high schools and among 79 selected for display by curator Karli Wurzelbacher and guest juror, artist and Long Island’s Best alumna Emily Martin.

Deborah used Howardena Pindell’s 1996 mixed-media piece “Relationships” as inspiration. “I was inspired by her use of colors and spatial manipulation as well the piece’s chaotic yet harmonious feel,” Deborah wrote. “I wanted to focus on the concept of time and explore the idea that many children grow up too fast. In order to illustrate this, I drew toys like bubbles. Growing up, I had a lot of plastic jewelry and I wanted to reference my own personal childhood by including them.”

“I want my piece to give feelings of nostalgia, regret, pain, and a sense of childhood trauma,” she continued. “Her tears are meant to look like bubbles and represent the soap from her childhood toy now stinging her eyes. She is also holding a stuffed animal to show her reluctance to grow up, but the dark smoke and fire are very apparent and represent reality bleeding into the childhood innocence.”

Deborah’s art teacher is Frank Musto, and her work was on display from April 30 to May 29.

For more information about the Commack School District, please visit the District's website at https://www.commackschools.org. Happenings in the District can also be followed on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/commackschooldistrict.