Irina Reutov's piece that placed second in the 2012 ASAA All State Art Competition.
By Carson Duggar
“Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.” A quote by Marilyn Monroe, whom Irina Reutov cited in her artist’s statement. She went on to explain, “Quotes are one of my inspirations. I use a variety of mediums such as oil paint, ceramics, and mixed media when constructing my work. I create pieces that focus on blending colors with other painted objects on canvas. Texture and color are my most loved aspects of art. I often envision more than one concept in an art form. My work, I’ve found, is very feminine because all women are beautiful in their own way. A reason why I love art so much is because you can create something out of nothing, art is never perfect and it shouldn’t be.”
Above is the artist statement that Irina Reutov, senior at Homer High school, included with her ceramics piece that she entered into the 2012 ASAA All State Art Competition. Her sculpture consisted of a rugged portrait of a woman’s torso, lacking arms, as well as a head-covered by clay strips that symbolize clothing-bare shoulders and a petal like necklace all glazed earthy brown hues. The piece placed second in the contest, making her the only student on the entire Kenai Peninsula to receive an award this year.
ASAA made a drastic change this year, by hosting the competition online instead of at a school, which they hoped would increase participation, they succeeded. Each of the twenty-three Alaska high schools was limited to submitting five pieces per school. Categories are as followed: Ceramics, Communication Art, Drawing, Jewelry/Metalsmithing, Mixed Media, Multicultural Art, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, Sculpture, and Textile/Fiber Design.
Irina also entered a mixed media piece but she was not the only student to submit; Kyle Wisner submitted a bowl, and Bella Vaz submitted painting.
Homer High art teacher Maygan Janetta stated proudly, “Irina exhibits an enormous amount of talent and passion, most often found in professional artists.”