Teens' photos, paintings featured at boro library
Monmouth County high school students display work through January
BY DANIEL HOWLEY Staff Writer

WEST LONGBRANCH- An exhibit featuring the artwork of a group of Monmouth County high school students is on display at the borough library this month.

The exhibit, which features oil pastels, paintings and photographs, is a compilation of work from students throughout Monmouth County high schools who participate in the Monmouth County Arts High School (MCAHS) program.

"I think [the pieces of work] are great," said David Lisa, director of the West Long Branch Library. "It's really nice to be able to feature the work."

The display represents a variety of artwork from 14 students of the MCAHS program. The pieces are the result of the culmination of a year'swork by the students, which were submitted as their final examination of the program, according to Donna Anonsen,managing director of theMCAHS.

"At the end of the season, the bestwork is chosen out of what [the students] have done and is displayed at various libraries throughout Monmouth County," Anonsen said last week.

"A new library [hosts] the exhibit each month," she added.

The artwork is part of a traveling exhibit that is displayed at various libraries throughout Monmouth County and for the month of January it is being featured inWest Long Branch, according toAnonsen.

The MCAHS is a not-for-profit program funded through private donations, state grants and corporate sponsorships, that allows high school students from throughout the county to develop and sharpen their artistic skills while earning college credits.

A former participant of the MCAHS program and one of the featured artists at the West Long Branch exhibit said that the classes she took through the programwere a great learning experience for her.

"I learned a tremendous amount about art and different techniques and many things I didn't know I could do," Angelica Giebler, 18, of Wall Township High School said. "I met a lot of other students that had great talent.

"We all worked together in amazing ways," she added.

Giebler's work at the library is an oil pastel titled "Saint Catherine'sArch."

"I took a trip to England to attend classes at Cambridge in 2005 as part of a programfor high school students," Giebler said.

JEFF GRANIT staff High school students who participate in the Monmouth County Arts High School program have their artwork on display at the West Long Branch Library.

While in England, Giebler said she took enough pictures to fill up 14 rolls of filmand then transposed the pictures she liked most into oil pastels.

Giebler said the inspiration for the work she produced at the MCAHS program came from a picture she took of an area surrounding the dormshewas living inwhile in England.

The artwork chosen for this month's exhibit was created by students, "of the highest caliber," according to Anonsen.

"The students do very well," Anonsen said. "In addition to their art, they are taught organization and prioritizing skills.

"Students have to organize their time very well," she said, adding, "They have homework from school and here, in addition to attending three hours of class here a week."

A pastel drawing of a chair by Margiret Gibbon, 16, a student at Middletown High School South, was also selected to be featured at the exhibit.

"The class itself was taught in the same way a college level art class would be, and I think that kind of structure was good for me," Gibbon said. "I wanted to evoke a calm feeling after having a really busy freshman year.

"My goalwas to recapture that," she said, adding, "[Art is] a way to express a lot of things I wouldn't normally be able to. It's something I really enjoy and is really important tome. I think Iwould be a different person without it."

Also featured at the exhibit is a drawing in chalk pastel of a pink flower by Samantha Stevens, 17, ofHenryHudson RegionalHigh School.

"[The programwas] a lot ofwork, but definitely worth it," Stevens said. "[The drawing] remindsme of the summer and being in Florida."

The MCAHS comprises students from grades nine through 12 and was originally started inMiddlesex County in 1980.

The programinMiddlesex County caught the attention of several Monmouth County school superintendents who were interested in introducing it in Monmouth County, according toAnonsen.

The program was started in Monmouth County in 2003,Anonsen said.

The Monmouth County program runs fromJanuary throughMay and students are required to attend one three-hour class per week.

The amount of students involved in the programvaries fromyear to year, depending on the amount of applicants,Anonsen said.

"There is no limit to the amount [of students] we can accept,"Anonsen said, adding, "If classes become too large they are split into smaller ones.

"We have approximately 160 students in the program this year," she said, adding, "Students are taught by professional artists in their individual fields.

"[The students] attend one afternoon a week in the spring semester during the regular school day," she said.

Students in the program have the option to study a variety of topics, including visual arts, dance, theater, singing, creative writing, poetry,multigenrewriting and photography.

The mission statement of MCAHS is "an understanding of the arts helps describe, define and ultimately deepen the human experience. This must be an essential component of every child's basic education and a lifelong pursuit."

Students must reside in Monmouth County and be of good academic and social standing in order to be accepted into the program, according toAnonsen.

Students are required to submit an application and a portfolio of paintings, photographs andwriting samples for the visual arts program

If students wish to enroll in the performing arts program, theymust audition in addition to submitting an application.

"We also have a middle school program from grades six through eight," Anonsen said. "We have a central location for the middle school programat the Long BranchAcademy Middle School, however, the location for the high school varies."

Formore information aboutMCAHS, call DonnaAnonsen at (732) 566-2787. Formore information about the exhibit at the West Long Branch library, call (732) 222-5993.