Starkville Art Students Get National Recognition

STARKVILLE, Miss. (Press Release) — Starkville High seniors Cat Buffington and Carys Snyder have earned national recognition and honors in one of the most competitive art programs in the country.

The National YoungArts Foundation chose Cat and Carys as two of 700 winners selected from more than 11,000 applicants throughout the country for the strength of their portfolios in the area of visual arts.  Winners are selected through a blind adjudication process and are designated into three categories: Finalist, Honorable Mention and Merit.  Cat was one of 25 students from 46 states to receive Honorable Mention in the visual arts category while Carys was one of 68 students who earned Merit.

For the competition, Cat and Carys were required to submit 10-piece portfolios that demonstrated a particular theme or technique.

Cat, a graduate of the William Winter Summer Youth Institute at the University of Mississippi and the founder of UNITY, a student led organization that brings together students from public and private high schools for relationship building through community service, chose to use artistic expression to represent causes near to her heart.

“I wanted the art to be bigger than me,” Buffington said of her decision to create 10 works of art that reflect social injustices of racism, abuse and hatred and invoke the scientific process of thought.  It took about 10 months to complete her portfolio which included a clay sculpture of Governor William Winter and a 15 foot tall “art installation”, a three dimensional work that is meant to be created, constructed, or installed on the site where it is exhibited.

Carys, who recently was selected for admission to Columbia University, decided to concentrate on technique for her portfolio using charcoal.  Her journey to complete ten drawings began when she drove to Oktoc to meet retired dairy farmer and mechanic Boswell Kennard last spring.

“That drawing took me two months to complete,” Carys said.   “From there I began to experiment with new material from surreal to still life.”

SHS art teacher Andrew Lark says he has watched Carys and Cat transform their skills as artists ever since they first enrolled in his art class as freshmen.

“Drawing skin is one of the most difficult techniques to master, but Carys has the ability to make her subjects’ skin come alive,” Lark said.

“A year ago, Cat had never experimented with sculpting,” Lark said.  “Since then, she’s immersed herself in learning her craft.  Her growth level simply cannot be measured.”

Cat and Carys credit Mr. Lark with providing them the instruction to become better artists.

“I’m very grateful to Mr. Lark for teaching us the proper techniques,” Carys said.  “At times, he definitely pushed me to do things I did not understand or I did not want to do,” Carys added with a smile.  “Without his instruction, I would not be the artist I am today.”

“I’ve always been drawn to sculpting,” Cat said.  “When Mr. Lark’s daughter, Tonya, a student at SCAD, who is studying sculpture was home for Christmas last year, she spent her holiday at the White House working with me.”

Although preparing for competition was grueling at times, Cat and Carys challenged each other to become better artists through the experience.

“I could see my growth with each piece I finished and that inspired me to keep going,” Cat said.

“I definitely didn’t think I was capable of creating anything of that size,” Carys said remembering the drawing of Mr. Kennard that measured six feet wide and five feet tall.

As winners, Cat and Carys are now considered alumni of National YoungArts, and they have the opportunity to travel to Miami in March to participate in workshops and master classes led by accomplished professional artists.   They received medallions as well as letters of recommendation to colleges and universities for their artistic ability. As an Honorable Mention winner, Cat also received a monetary award.

The National YoungArts Foundation identifies and supports the next generation of artists and provides them with opportunities to help ensure that the nation’s most outstanding emerging artists are encouraged to pursue careers in the arts.