On display in the Library Media Center Reading Lounge Café is artwork by the Intermediate Art and Studio Art Honors classes of Hawthorne High School. The pieces include paintings in either acrylic or tempera by Marina Kaghado, Rich Christensen, Brianna Garcia, Kayla Gordon, Alex Wojtecki, Ryan Zawojski, Alice Graziano, and Nicole Vander Werf. From the more simple tempera paintings that focus on color and precision, to the more complex acrylic paintings that add the dimension of texture, these pieces are certainly worth a look.

Kaghado’s tempera piece with thick brush strokes is open to interpretation. The first piece to be seen upon entering the café, the painting’s deep blue strokes softened by lighter tones of blue and yellow give the calming impression of the meeting of the sea and sky.

The tempera painting by Christensen, next to Kaghado’s, has a different palate, that of a peachy sunset, vibrantly verdant with leafy trees and perfectly appropriate for springtime.

Garcia’s tempera artwork is a fantasy-colored amusement park silhouette reflecting over water. Its purples, pinks, yellows, and oranges combine realistic shapes with unconventional hues.In contrast, the tempera piece by Gordon is a realistic image of a cliffy beach with azure water and sand a viewer can almost feel him- or herself sinking into. The colors of the sand, cliffs, water, and sky blend beautifully to place the viewer right into the canvas.

Wojtecki’s tempera painting is also an interpretation of the sky. In his, the pink sky is deepened by vibrant  red and orange. The red in the painting jumps out and captivates the viewer.

Zawojski, a Studio Art Honors student, creates a remarkable acrylic piece giving the illusion of motion. By painting an image of a horse and rider sans clear lines or borders, the painting appears to be moving. The color scheme intrigues the eye, with a background that appears to be white but is actually a combination of different blue, green, orange, gold, and black hues, tamed by the white base but still managing to leave the impression of each pigment. The main focus of the painting, the horse, is a fiery red which is deepened by the overlay of black, textured acrylic. Somehow, this painting manages to be both white and colorful, both abstract and pragmatic, and both complex and simple.

In comparison, Graziano’s piece takes on a more realistic angle. A Studio Art Honors student as well, Graziano has painted a close-up of a woman’s striking face and beautiful, flowing strands of hair. The gorgeous blue eye in the picture jumps out, and the viewer can almost feel the wind blowing through the painting’s dark brown hair. The luscious, deep lips, partially opened, are seductive, beautiful, and fierce, yielding a gorgeous painting of a gorgeous woman.

Another Studio Art Honors student, Vander Werf, has created an acrylic overlay of a color scheme of deep reds, sweet pinks, cheerful oranges, and bright yellows, only to be hardened by the all-black outline of Mona Lisa. The dichotomy between the warm background of layering and flat black layer on top creates interest in the piece.

These creative and artistic pieces are on display in the Library Media Center until the school-wide art show on May 22.