Marlborough High School Alumni working/ studying the Visual Arts share their inspiration, new work and thoughts on Art Education. Created by Kristi Oliver, a visual arts educator at Marlborough High School in Marlborough, MA for display during National Arts in Education Week and Arts and Humanities Month in 2011. Thanks to all who participated!

1. Marlborough Public Schools
proudly presents
VISUAL ARTS ALUMNI EXHIBITION

2. “Art plays an important role in every individual’s life.
Art allows children’s minds to develop by challenging
them to think in special and different ways. Art has the
ability to create a place for people to escape to. I
believe art lends itself for communication without the
use of words and enriches lives by introducing
aesthetic literacy. I want to teach art because I have a
strong passion for learning, children, and visual arts.
Everyone learns differently and art is just another form
of learning. I believe that art is a tool that can be used
to change a person’s life, and every child should have
the equal opportunity to obtain that tool. Art for me, is
an aspect of my life which makes me who I am and its
what I want to do with my life; without it I would have
no way to express who I am and what I believe.”
ANGELA CHOUINARD
MHS Class of 2008
Currently attending the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, majoring in Art Education

3. ANGELA CHOUINARD
MHS Class of 2008
Currently attending the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, majoring in Art Education

4. ANGELA CHOUINARD
MHS Class of 2008
Currently attending the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, majoring in Art Education

5. ANGELA CHOUINARD
MHS Class of 2008
Currently attending the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, majoring in Art Education

6. ANGELA CHOUINARD
MHS Class of 2008
Currently attending the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, majoring in Art Education

7. "Art has always been an
important part of my life.
After graduating from
Marlborough High I went on
to study printmaking at
MassArt. Being surrounded
by artists and having my
professors open my eyes to
what it means to be an artist
after college I realized this is
the only path I have before
me.”
AMANDA LACHAPPELLE
MHS Class of 2006
Attended Massachusetts College of Art & Design, Majored in Printmaking

8. “Art has been the most rewarding endeavor I have ever undertaken. It can provide comfort at times of
need, a place to vent any kind of emotion from anger to joy, and a way to make connections with other
people without an exchange of words. While it is a fulfilling means of self expression, it cannot be
forgotten how much hard work and perseverance it requires. The challenges you face as an artist are
bound to surprise you and force you to do things that you thought were impossible. But that's what
makes the glory of the successes that much more powerful.
My love for art and my mentors from Marlboro High and MassArt have provided me opportunities
which I would have thought were impossible. My first exposure to what life as an artist might mean
was with an opportunity to participate at Art All-State at the Worcester Art Museum in 2005. Since then I
have had many opportunities to work with and for established artists, which has given me insight to the
art world and what will hopefully be in store for me. In 2010, with a class from MassArt, I was able to
travel to China to see both the ancient art of the country and the contemporary work. In 2011, I was
awarded a travel fellowship which allowed me to spend four months studying and making art
independently in Oaxaca, Mexico. There I was able to focus all my energy to developing my own body of
work while experiencing a new culture. I have shown my work in many galleries around Boston and in
Mexico and New Hampshire."
AMANDA LACHAPPELLE
MHS Class of 2006
Attended Massachusetts College of Art & Design, Majored in Printmaking

9. “Art is not just a creative skill,
it is a form of self expression.
A way to escape from the
world around you and get lost
in it. Without art life would be
simply meaningless to me, to
anyone. It would be dry and
dull, no excitement or change.
Art is a necessity in life.”
AMANDA SAWYER
MHS Class of 2009
Currently attending the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, majoring in Graphic Design

10. “Art is something that has always been the
most integral facet of my lifestyle. Its
importance to me transcends self expression
alone because often I draw purely for my
own enjoyment, and without any
motivation for communicating with others.
Art is purely and simply the thing that
makes me most happy, and my ability to
draw is what makes me most proud to be
me. Furthermore, the pursuit of Art is the
ultimate motivation because the
development of one's skills is an infinite
process, where there is always room for
learning and improvement.”
CALVIN LALIBERTE
MHS Class of 2007

11. “After taking numerous art and sewing classes at MHS, I
attended Parsons School of Design in New York City,
majoring in the BFA Fashion Design program and taking
a full year of Illustration electives. Throughout school, I
was able to secure numerous illustration jobs and
womenswear design internships, beginning with Zac
Posen. Meanwhile, I was simultaneously interning with
luxury eveningwear designer Naeem Khan - a paid
internship that evolved into my serving as his Assistant
Designer while still a full-time student. During my time
there, I was able to partake in all aspects of design, and
witness my work strut down the New York Fashion Week
catwalk, be available in luxury retailers such as Saks Fifth
Avenue, and even worn by Annette Bening at the 83rd
Academy Awards. By chance, I decided to take an
internship designing at Victoria's Secret Direct, which
eventually led to my dropping out of enrollment at
Parsons and becoming a full-time freelance designer. In
my free time, I am currently working on launching a
fully-fledged side career as a freelance illustrator.”
CALVIN LALIBERTE
MHS Class of 2007

12. CALVIN LALIBERTE
MHS Class of 2007

13. CALVIN LALIBERTE
MHS Class of 2007

14. “Art is the physical
form of your
imagination. Art
doesn’t need
explaining. Those
who explain art do
not understand art.”
CHRIS STECYK
MHS Class of 2008
Currently attending the University of Vermont, Majoring in Photography

15. CHRIS STECYK
MHS Class of 2008
Currently attending the University of Vermont, Majoring in Photography

16. “Art has always been a part of my life. I knew when
I was little I was going to grow up and do something
with art. I didn't know it until my sophomore year of
high school that I wanted to be an Art Teacher,
primarily at the high school level. Now, with the
help from all of my art teachers throughout the
years, I am well on my way to becoming an Art
Teacher. I am currently an Art Education Major, with
a concentration in 2D design, working towards a
minor in Art History, at the University of
Massachusetts Dartmouth. I couldn't be more proud
to say I will graduate from the same University as
many of my former Art Educators. I hope to join
them someday as an Alum, perhaps even come full
circle, back to MHS and work alongside those great
artists. I hope I can inspire, encourage, and excite my
future students like I was inspired, encouraged, and
excited by my former Art Teachers.”
CLAIRE MUNLEY
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Majoring in Art Education

17. “Art, seeming to me as an ever changing ocean
of creativity, has been in my life in all shapes and
forms the best and the worst, my comfort and
my hell, my passion through and through from
time to time abandoning my world and then
coming back full throttle. Going to school for art
(Photography & Sculpture) changed my views
drastically. At some point art became this
impossible thing I needed to come up with,
followed by penalties if it wasn’t done in time,
all of which pushed me away. On top of that,
overnight everybody became a photographer,
leaving me standing in a corner, with my arms
crossed, not wanting to go near my darkroom.
So I said, “forget film, for get the camera, forget
all the essentials” and undressed myself.....”
CONSTANZA LEAL
MHS Class of 2005
Attended Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Majored in Photography & Sculpture

18. “... I strategically positioned two enlargers,
taped together 4 pieces of the largest photo
paper I could find, I used a long stick and a
timer. I laid down, feeling exposed and
awkward, yet free. My long hair was all
over, the paper was cold, sticky yet
comforting.
With uncertainty, I hit the timer and the
enlargers turned on. I held my breath for
42 seconds and then, just before fainting,
the lights were off again. I felt ridiculous
for a moment, but overwhelmed with
excitement. Barefooted, I walked over to
the chemicals and there it was... the
answer: Go large, and do what none of
them are doing.”
CONSTANZA LEAL
MHS Class of 2005
Attended Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Majored in Photography & Sculpture

19. CONSTANZA LEAL
MHS Class of 2005
Attended Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Majored in Photography & Sculpture

20. CONSTANZA LEAL
MHS Class of 2005
Attended Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Majored in Photography & Sculpture

21. “I loved the variety of classes I had to
choose from at MHS, it wasn’t just
drawing and painting. The darkroom
was my favorite. The teachers were all
so helpful with anything you asked, and
always tried their hardest to make you
succeed. For example entering my
pictures and graphic designs into
different galleries and award
competitions.
Right now I am going to
Quinsigammond Community College,
so I can save money then transfer to
Mass College of Pharmacy and Health
Sciences (which by the way is next to
Mass Art) and major in pre-med. So I
will have many medical inspired
pictures coming soon.
IVONNE FLORES
MHS Class of 2010
Attending Quinsigammond Community College, Majoring in Pre-Med

22. My photography teacher, Ms. Oliver
always inspired me to create,
especially in times where I had no clue
what to do for an assignment. She
gave me ideas that went with my
interests. Thanks to her I found a lot
of my favorite photographers, who
also inspire me to be like them.
Even though I’m not doing an art
career, I see everything with a
photographers eye, it’s like a disease.
I’m always thinking about the
composition of everything around me,
leading lines of direction and how
good something would look with
different photography techniques.”
IVONNE FLORES
MHS Class of 2010
Attending Quinsigammond Community College, Majoring in Pre-Med

23. “I graduated MHS in 2008 after
taking photography classes for two
years, including AP Studio Art in my
senior year. I attended the Hartford
Art School in West Hartford, CT for
one year, after which I decided that I
missed the energy of Boston, and
transferred to New England School of
Photography in Kenmore Square. I
graduated from NESOP in June of
2011 with a major in Advertising and
a minor in Fine- Art Photography.
Since graduating, I've been employed
as an e-commerce photographer by a
clothing retailer called 344.”
KATHERINE JUDD
MHS Class of 2008
Attended New England School of Photography

24. KATHERINE JUDD
MHS Class of 2008
Attended New England School of Photography

25. KATHERINE JUDD
MHS Class of 2008
Attended New England School of Photography

26. “Art is a janitor sweeping the floor,
and paying just a little more attention
to it than he should be. He stays up
almost all night, sweeping and
cleaning, vacuuming and washing.
Once and awhile he'll leave a little
cobweb or stain in the corner of a
room or hall. Sometimes he does it
intentionally. Other times, he feels
something pushing and pulling him.
As if his own ghost is whispering in
his ear, knowing all along where to go.
Regardless of motive, it is his will in
the end. This is art.”
KYLE HEDIN
MHS Class of 2009
Currently attending Montserrat College of Art, Majoring in Illustration & Creative Writing

27. “Art is a forever changing
constant. It’s perfect because it
will never stop changing or
become boring, but when you
need something stable it won’t
ever leave you behind. It is
beautiful and expressive; it allows
true form to unfold in not only a
piece but in life. It can pull the
wildness from your heart while at
the same time keeping your
relaxed. It teaches us and guides
us. It allows you to communicate
your outlook without having to
talk. Art reveals truth, it shows
emotion and it’s raw. It doesn’t
lie and unlike anything else it is
there for you when the world
seems hopeless.”
MARIA SARTORI
MHS Class of 2011
Currently attending the Art Institute of Boston at Lesley University, Majoring in Photography

28. “Art is always there,
whenever I’m feeling sad I
take out my camera and go
for a walk and photograph
everything. Anything can
be made interesting. As
Andy Warhol said, “Art is
what you can get away
with.”
MARY KALAGIAN
MHS Class of 2009
Attended New England School of Photography

29. “Art is my life/my life is art. It’s
definitely my obsession. A beautiful
picture, an inspiring visual
performance, a tone or a pitch of a
sound piece will bring me to tears. I
feel in the art I am some kind of
communicator between different
worlds. And I for sure feel like art is
the only way for me to have a
gorgeous, personal, gut wrenchingly
honest conversation with the universe.
And I love it so much.”
MEREDITH SIBLEY
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending Massachusetts College of Art & Design
Majoring in Studio for Interrelated Media, focusing in stage design

30. MEREDITH SIBLEY
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending Massachusetts College of Art & Design
Majoring in Studio for Interrelated Media, focusing in stage design

31. "I truly love art and I am
confident that my words will
not accurately describe my
fondness for all things
created; however, if I were to
try, I would say that I love art
because it allows me to both
find beauty in the everyday
world and provides me with
the opportunity to create
beauty (or, at least try to) from
my imagination."
MIA WHITTEMORE
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending Boston University, Majoring in Elementary and Special Education

32. The Prayer:
This was my most recent
illustration, showing an
important key scene in a graphic
novel that sadly never came to
fruition (though I did get 40
pages into it and am planning a
"reboot"). I think it shows off my
"style" and coloring skills well. I
also like the play of intense
foreground, the characters in the
middle ground, and the monsters
in the background.
MIKE SCHOVITZ
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending Bristol Community College, Majoring in Electronic Media & Game Design

33. Integrity:
Another experiment with composition
and mood, this piece was done for a
friend based on a game he really liked. I
was listening to the soundtrack for the
game, and one of the songs stuck so I
tried to capture the mood with the
illustration. I also was playing around
with tints, so to give a stylistic
impression of "night time" I saturated
the picture with some blue and bumped
up the contrast.
MIKE SCHOVITZ
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending Bristol Community College, Majoring in Electronic Media & Game Design

34. Not in Love:
I listened to a song of a similar title by
Crystal Castles and created a story and
characters around it, so this could be
considered one of my "interpretations" of
the song. That's usually how I get a lot of
my ideas- I listen to music and draw
what it conjures in my mind. The
characters shown, Kosa and Edah were
the main characters of both a potential
game in class and a graphic novel I'm
working on at present.
MIKE SCHOVITZ
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending Bristol Community College, Majoring in Electronic Media & Game Design

35. Sundaaran Process:
This I just did for kicks on my webpage to sort of give a "walk-through" of the steps I take to
achieve my end result. Other than that, there's not much else to say about it besides this is one
of the few I wasn't listening to music when I drew it.
MIKE SCHOVITZ
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending Bristol Community College, Majoring in Electronic Media & Game Design

36. "Since I have left MHS and started at
MassArt, my interest in mediums
have completely changed. When I
graduated high school, I planned on
being a photography major, but after
taking a sculpture class during
freshmen year in college, I decided I
wanted to start a career in 3D. I am
currently working in metal and
exploring welding, blacksmithing and
casting. Three years ago I never
thought that I would be working in
the field that I'm in now, and I'm
really glad that I kept an open mind
for new experiences."
MISSY KEMP
MHS Class of 2009
Currently attending Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Majoring in Sculpture

37. “I do art because
I like to make
something that
doesn't exist
anywhere else.”
NICK SULLIVAN
MHS Class of 2007
Attended Massachusetts College of Art & Design, Majored in Illustration

38. “By perusing art and taking so
many classes, especially at
MHS, I've learned that anything
can be achieved with practice,
and it's okay to show your
work, success or failure. Art has
also made me fearless- I
recently found myself trying
glassblowing, which was
amazing but a little scary.”
RACHEL SAUNDERS
MHS Class of 2011
Currently attending Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Majoring in Animation

39. "I am currently a Senior at the University of
Massachusetts Dartmouth where I will be
graduating with a B.F.A. in Art Education
and a B.A. in Art History in May of 2012.
The University has truly helped me develop
and surpass the artist I once imaged myself
being upon graduation. I have learned to
create and my skills have continually
improved, but more importantly I have
learned to perceive. It has become more
important to observe, analyze, and apply a
vocabulary to the visceral. I am most
thankful for the guidance I received in high
school to not only pursue my dreams, but to
have options.
At UMD I have done more then evolve as an
artist. Since my first day of classes four years
ago I have explored what other advantages
attending a University truly offered.”
SHELDON VIGEANT
MHS Class of 2007
Currently attending the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth,
Majoring in Art Education & Art History

40. “I am the College of Visual and Performing Arts
Representative and the former Recording Secretary
for the Student Government Association for the
fourth year. I am a brother of Theta Delta Chi
International Fraternity, where I am currently the
Treasurer and Fundraising Chair, and formerly the
Secretary, Academic Chair, and our International
Charge Representative. I am also a Peer Health
Educator, Tour Guide, Golden Key International
Honor Society member, and Order of Omega Greek
Honor Society member. My extracurriculars have
been balanced by a strong work ethic from the
classroom to multiple places of employment,
Text earning my own education. The successes as a
student representative on multiple University
committees and organizations have allowed me to
mature and become more then just an art student. It
will be with great pleasure that I someday grace the
classroom with all I have been taught to perhaps
inspire students alike to obtain their dreams."
SHELDON VIGEANT
MHS Class of 2007
Currently attending the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Majoring in Art Education &
Art History

41. “Photography has really impacted my life
in a positive way. While I was at
Marlborough High, photography helped
me through a really difficult time in my
life. I loved being in the class and in the
dark room. It helped me purge my
emotions into a picture. I'm not in school
for photography, I'm in school to be a
Pastor, but photography will always be a
part of my life. No matter where I go or
what I do, I always have my camera
ready. You never know when inspiration
will strike.”
TAYLOR FRASER
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending Zion Bible College

42. TAYLOR FRASER
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending Zion Bible College

43. TAYLOR FRASER
MHS Class of 2010
Currently attending Zion Bible College