New York City is known worldwide for being an incredibly diverse and prominent hub of the arts, from Broadway to the Metropolitan. The city is a thriving and living epicenter of creation, imagination, and inspiration. Numerous famous artists have mentioned the city as an inspiration for their works, and across the nation it’s seen as the United States’ ultimate creative hotspot. This unique culture of the city made New York the ideal place for the aspiring artists of Westminster to visit for their AP art trip over the weekend of September 6.
The group visited many landmark sites, each providing its own unique inspiration to the students. Some students, such as junior Kenzie Harrell, preferred the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA, for short), while others, like senior Saachi Singh, enjoyed the Metropolitan Museum of Art more for its expansive galleries.
“Monet is my favorite artist, and they had so many of his paintings there. I loved getting to see them up close and in real life,” said Harrell.
The students took time to observe the many exhibits of both museums, with various art mediums displayed in each. The classes got to appreciate both ancient and modern works, from neoclassical historic pieces to vibrant 21st-century paintings like those of Andy Warhol.
Whether life reflects art or art reflects life, New York City has plenty of both. In between visits to the MOMA and various Chelsea galleries, the students gathered inspiration from the diverse group of people that make up the city’s social scenes. Manhattan, despite being a mere twenty-three square miles long, is densely packed with things to see and do. Every block contains inspiration and life, and the students took to the streets to experience and observe what makes the city so vibrant. Junior Huntley Hargraves describes how even outside of the classes’ museum and gallery visits, there was still so much to learn.
“One of the things we did was a collage with found materials in the city,” Hargraves says, “and it was really cool turning random stuff we found into art. The trash reflected the city.”
Furthermore, the students got the opportunity to learn about the inner workings of the art industry, with multiple gallery inspections. During these walk-throughs, the students got to learn more about how art is curated and the economics of art collection and sales. Many galleries closed down just for the students to allow them to roam freely and examine their exhibits without other distractions.
During one of their evenings, the class took on Times Square, a culturally significant intersection of commerce and graphic design. This experience allowed the students to understand some of the potential future careers in the artistic fields as well as witness a vibrant combination of lights, colors, and sounds that make up the advertising industry. Not only did the students experience plenty of 2-D visual media, but they also spent an evening at the musical Hell’s Kitchen, a semi-autobiographical production about the rise of Alicia Keys, which served as a model for different art forms such as live performance and music. Senior Raleigh Bunting described this as her favorite part of the trip.
“I don’t really get to go to a lot of plays or musicals in Atlanta outside of school performances,” said Bunting.
This production explored finding inspiration within other media and further presented the soul of the city by using music and dance to communicate ideas of growth and development.
As with any Westminster travel program, the teachers and organizers that made this experience possible deserve massive thanks for holding the responsibility that comes with shepherding a group of high school students around the busiest city in the world. The AP art teachers, including Mrs. Wentzel, Mr. Reese, Mr. Steele, and Mrs. Martinez, created this trip in order to begin the semester with a plethora of experiences they can apply throughout the course. Additionally, the students have expressed their love for this yearly tradition due to the freedom they are allowed.
Saturday night the students got the opportunity to visit the Guggenheim, one of the most renowned art museums in the country. They attended an event called R.A.P.: Rhythm and Poetry to see the works of Rashid Johnson, an American artist with a focus on Black culture within his works. The exhibit included more than ninety artworks, including an outdoor sculpture and two performances, one of which the class was lucky enough to see.
Outside of the organized activities, the students are encouraged to roam the city, not only to seek inspiration but also to enjoy the many experiences New York has to offer. Juniors Jane Avery and Evie Baker enjoyed trying new cafes in their free time, while others enjoyed people-watching in Central Park. This freedom allowed for each student to have a unique trip experience, encouraging them to seek out the things that inspire them the most outside of class time to further develop their voice as an artist.
The primary purpose of the trip is for students to gather inspiration for their sustained investigations that they will work on throughout the year and eventually submit in their AP portfolios come May. Many non-art students expressed excitement for seeing their peers’ work that comes from this trip, highlighting the importance of not just creating but also observing and appreciating the work of others.
“I always love to see what my friends are doing,” Junior Mae Sutlive says. “It’s so cool to walk past something in Pressley and be like, ‘Wow, I had no idea this person was so talented.’”
In the upcoming months, make sure to keep an eye out for the works that were produced with inspiration gathered from this trip. Common spots on campus to spot student artwork include the hallway near the College Counseling Center, the bottom floor of Barge, and right outside of Malone.
Edited by Kavya Athota
