This past year, fifteen NCHS students brought home multiple Gold Keys, Silver Keys, and special awards from the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, one of the most competitive programs for student artists in the country. With thousands of entries judged across Connecticut, the recognition reflects not just strong technical abilities, but a growing emphasis on creative risk taking.
“It’s the students who are willing to take risks,” art teacher Jennifer Sinski said. “When they push outside what’s comfortable and try to say something personal, that’s when the work becomes stronger and more original.”
Students earned top recognition at the Gold Key level. Analiese Bergmans received two Gold Keys for her drawings The Cost of Growing Up and Raw, while Eva Warner earned a Gold Key for her photography piece Grand Tetons. Gabrielle Savelli, Emmeline DeMuth and outside submission Joy Zhao also received Gold Keys, demonstrating the strength of NCHS artists across drawing and photography, as well as their ability to stand out in highly competitive categories.
Silver Key winners added to that success. Isabelle Kelly earned a Silver Key for her portfolio Where Am I Going? Where Have I Been? and also received a University of Hartford Art School Scholarship Award. Additional Silver Keys went to Devin Boulanger for photography, Emily Meng for both Ocean Embers and Relaxation, Logan Scherr for photography, Lucy Bench for printmaking, and outside submission Blake Pozatek.
Sophomore Emma McPartland was one of the standout winners. Her photography piece Arabesque earned both a Gold Key and the CAEA Armini Award for Best in Experimental Photography, a conferment given to work that shows exceptional creativity and innovation.
The piece captures a dancer in motion, layering multiple images into a single composition. Instead of freezing one moment, the photograph shows a sequence (jumps, turns, and transitions) all existing within the same frame. The result is fluid and cinematic, turning movement into something you can see all at once.
“I was trying to capture movement over time,” Emma McPartland said. “I took a lot of photos and experimented with different angles before figuring out what worked together.”
That process: trial, error, and revision, is something Jennifer Sinski encourages across all levels of the program. Students are often pushed to explore unfamiliar materials or approaches, presenting a challenge and learning opportunity.
“I like to give them inspiration, but also room to take their own direction,” Sinski said. “When they start making decisions for themselves and taking those risks, that’s when their work really develops.”
Other NCHS students also received top recognition. Analiese Bergmans earned two Gold Keys for her drawings, while Eva Warner received a Gold Key for photography. Across disciplines like digital painting, printmaking, and mixed media, students produced work that was both technically strong and conceptually driven.
“When you see your work being recognized like that, it makes you want to keep going,” Emma McPartland said.
Q&A with Emma McPartland:
What was your reaction when you found out you won?
I was honestly surprised. I didn’t expect to win anything, so it was really exciting to see that my work stood out.
What inspired Arabesque?
It came from dance. I wanted to show movement instead of just one still moment, so I combined multiple photos into one image.
What was the biggest challenge?
Timing. The dancer is always moving, so it took a lot of trial and error to capture everything at the right moment.
Has winning changed how you see your work?
Yes, it definitely gave me more confidence and made me want to keep improving.
