-
TRISHA MURPHY/Palatka Daily News – Florida School of the Arts students, from left, Vanessa Heymanowski, Trey Meyers and Brynn Lacouture hold some of their artworks that will be on display at the school’s Graduate Exhibition, which begins Thursday.
As a second-year Florida School of the Arts student, Trey Myers, 19, is ready to take the plunge into doing what he loves best.
Myers will receive an associate degree in studio art when he leaves FloArts.
“I hope to dive into animation and game development, making short films and fun games,” the St. Augustine resident said.“... I primarily work on 2D art, usually about stories I come up with. I create worlds, characters and plots around them.”
Besides that, Myers works mainly with graphite, ink and, more recently, acrylic markers. He will have six pieces in the Graduate Exhibition which opens Thursday and runs through May 9 at the FloArts Main Gallery at St. Johns River State College, 5001 St. Johns Ave. in Palatka.
An opening reception, which is free to the public, will begin at 5 p.m. Thursday.
Gallery hours are from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and during Main Stage performances.
According to FloArts studio art professor Dan Askew, works on display include paintings, new media and digital art. Besides Myers, the exhibit will also include those of Vanessa Heymanowski and Brynn Lacouture, both second-year graduates.
“The opening of these exhibitions gives the artists the opportunity to share their studio practices and conceptual process with an attending audience who are usually quite inquisitive about the work,” Askew said. “We have these shows every year for our visual arts students. It represents a celebration as well as a culmination of their studies here at FloArts and allows them the opportunity to present their work in a professional manner. Part of the opening event are artist talks, where students share their art-making process and are open to questions from the attending audience.”
Myers said his favorite piece is one called “Obligated to be Passionate.”
“It is one I really felt motivated while making,” he said. “It is the contrast between rushing to do something with a strict deadline and doing something out of love and inspiration.”
Myers admits he finds himself constantly daydreaming stories.
“Not during important times,” he said, smiling. “I have always loved cartoons and I also love video games and internet animations. I would love to make my own films with my own brand of wackiness.”
Myers said his pieces from the show will be available for purchase.
“I hope show-goers will see what we students are capable of and the importance of art as a whole,” he said. “I hope people use their imagination, think about what the person or (creator) is doing and why or how they got there in the first place. FloArts is a pretty great school. I’ve learned a lot and I’m still learning.”
Florida School of the Arts is part of the academic and administrative structure of SJR State For details, call 386-312-4300 or visit www.sjrstate.edu/floarts.
