Saugus pair lands honorable mention in art contest

SAUGUS – A pair of Saugus High School students were recently named runners up for the Boston Globe Scholastic Art and Writing Contest Silver Key award after submitting a pair of drawings they completed in art class.Senior Nick DiFilippis and junior Ashley Viveiros were honored at last week?s school committee meeting for their work, and art teacher Doreen Mastandrea said it?s the first time anyone from Saugus has been recognized.?This is the second year we submitted work,” she said. “They get thousands upon thousands of submissions every year. This is the first year we?ve gotten two honorable mentions. I?m very proud. It?s very difficult to get in. We applied last year and didn?t get anything in. There is a show at the transportation building in Boston for some of the winners so we?re going on a field trip there in a couple weeks.”Students spent several months drawing personal objects they brought into class. Students arranged them in an “interesting composition,” said Mastandrea. The students then took photos of the objects and worked off of both the pictures and the objects themselves.DeFilippis said the objects were placed on a black background with a “big light” shining on them. His drawing shows a headphone jack, a Tech Deck, which is a miniature skateboard, and an actual-sized skateboard truck, which connects the wheels to the skateboard deck.DeFilippis said it took about two months to finish his piece.?This is a real skateboard truck and I put it over where the real truck would be to show the enlargement,” he said.As an animal lover, Viveiros drew several animal statues including a cheetah, a bull and a rabbit. Viveiros said she never expected to be recognized.?I thought some of my other classmates were really good,” she said. “I never expected it at all. It was pretty shocking. I couldn?t believe it.”Viveiros said the shading and blending part of the drawing took the longest, and noted art is something she wants to pursue after school.?I like art a lot,” she said. “I kind of want to do something involved in art when I grow up. I happen to be involved in anime. I want to do something related to that like designing characters. It?s an art form.”Superintendent Richard Langlois congratulated the students, and said their work is a reflection of “good quality teachers.”?A lot of credit goes out to Doreen as well for really developing that department. To Nick and Ashley, congratulations. It?s really masterful work and we hope you pursue a career in the arts. You have some talent obviously. It?s a big thing to win that award.”According to the Boston Globe, 7,768 students in grades one through 12 submitted 13,776 pieces of art and 1,559 pieces of writing.Matt Tempesta can be reached at [email protected].