The art community all throughout the world is extremely important. Sometimes, it’s overlooked, which is unfortunate considering how many talented people there are out there. Here at Skyline High School, we have some really amazing artists. From paintings, drawings, ceramics, and even music, we have an unbelievable amount of talent. One of our incredible artists at Skyline is Adalyn Blodgett. Blodgett is in her senior year at SHS and is seventeen years old.
Her favorite medium for creating art is oil paints. Blodgett said, “I love how the paint is so smooth and easy to work with, and it’s so easy to control. Oil paints are great for layering and for getting bright contrasts in color and for being precise with small details. I love the feel of mixing oils with my palette knife and getting the perfect color. I have only been oil painting for a year now, but I love improving with each piece I make. Oil paintings take a lot of time to complete, but that is part of the satisfaction of getting everything right in the piece.”
Her favorite style of art is impressionist art. She states, “I love how in art you get to decide how much reality to include and how much to take away. All art takes away some reality, but I love when artists generalize shapes and colors, while still making the piece detailed and precise. Art is so complex, because it gives the illusion of freedom and effortlessness, when usually the artist worked very hard in each detail. The best impressionist paintings use simple colors and shapes to convey complex ideas and details.”
Blodgett says that she loves art because of what it represents. “I love art because it represents human emotion in such a beautiful way. I can see the passion an artist has for something in the way they use lines, colors, textures, and angles. I have always been inspired when I go to art museums and exhibits because of skilled craftsmanship, but also because of the way artists are able to convey ideas in a visual that is stunning and well-composed,” she said.
Starting art is hard enough, but sticking with it is even harder. “My advice to beginning artists is to keep creating! The only way to get better at something is to keep doing it, and it’s easy to think art isn’t for you just because your first painting wasn’t what you wanted it to be. The truth is, no ones’ first painting is what they want it to be. The good thing is, there’s always another canvas,” is her advice to beginning artists.
To be a successful artist it has to be important to you, and it takes a lot of dedication and inspiration. Blodgett was asked what about the art community is so important and how it’s inspired her. She says, “The art community is so important because it inspires people. One of the biggest reasons I am pursuing art right now is because of what I have seen others create. The art community is a place people can turn to to be inspired and to feel emotion. Art is about passion and communication, and good art communicates emotions and ideas to everyone as individuals.”
Blodgett’s proudest piece is an oil painting, her favorite medium. She explained, “The piece that I am proudest of is an oil painting depicting Portland Head Lighthouse. I love this piece because of the dedication I put into it, and my satisfaction with the result. It took me about a month to complete, and I worked on it in painting class and at home. I spent hours at my table perfecting small details like windows and clouds, and it was amazing to see how the effort I put into it paid off. This piece taught me about patience and also about my process as an artist. I learned how to keep moving when I felt stuck and how to get things right even if it wasn’t the first time I tried.”
