By Abby Whelan ’14, Staff Writer

Our school community prides itself on the immense talent that is shown at all levels of the arts program.  However, while the actors, singers, musicians, and dancers get to perform center stage, the visual artists display their talents a little bit differently. The visual artists—the painters, the sculptors, the drawers, the photographers—communicate their talent through stunning color and expert technique. Among these visual artists is senior Patrick Lai, whose unique sculptures and mixed media artwork is well known throughout the community. His work has made appearances in the art gallery and around the school, and also in Prisms, the Academy’s art and literary magazine.

Last year, Patrick decided to explore and enhance his art in a different environment. He completed a term abroad at the Oxbow School in California, for which he also had nothing but positive things to say–last year, Natalie Swanson ’13 wrote about his experience at the Oxbow School while still there; now, he has returned and joined the senior IB Visual Art class to show off his new skills. He stated, “Working with the other kids there definitely added some new things stylistically to my repertoire. I was forced to use other mediums than just clay, which I used pretty much exclusively freshman and sophomore year, which pushed me to work with materials I wasn’t as comfortable with and to experiment. I still prefer working 3D but am willing to sculpt out of

more materials because of Oxbow. For example I worked with pumpkin recently.” This piece is currently exhibited in a photograph in the IB Art Exhibit. It was also at Oxbow that Patrick created his personal favorite piece: a giant Hershey bar. He explained that “it was a really fun piece to make and I’m really proud of the character it has.”

When I asked about his views on the IB Visual Art curriculum, specifically the workbook in which student artists record their studio process and research other artists who inspire them,  Patrick said that “It’s a challenge to keep up with and requires you to really be passionate about making and thinking critically about art. [IB Art is] not a typical art class where you just work during class and have no outside work. That said, I appreciate having to research for the workbook because it leads to new ideas on improving your own stuff and inspiration for new projects.” As he describes the IB Art program and its challenging aspects, his optimistic attitude reflects his own true passion for art.

So, from the Oxbow school junior year to his involvement in the IB Art program at Newark Academy senior year, Patrick has the talent, the passion, and the attitude of a true artist. When asked about why he loves art, he said, “I love being able to lose myself in my work, the way the time melts away. It’s really a great break mentally from the academic crush of NA to have a period away from it all.”

While the arts can help us all to take a breath throughout the day when things get busy in our schedules, the independent thinking and the creative perspective required are challenging to master. However, Patrick has managed to acquire both of those traits and find his own center stage.