Island high schooler selected for international art exhibition

Rootbound, by Islay Ross

San Juan Island School District shares news about the achievements of Friday Harbor High School student Islay Ross.

Friday Harbor High School is excited to announce that the 2022 AP Art and Design Digital Exhibit is now available online and that one of our students, Islay Ross, has been featured.

The exhibit features 50 high school artists from six countries selected from more than 62,000 portfolios who submitted work to the 2022 AP Art and Design Exam. The featured students represent outstanding examples from the Sustained Investigation and Selected Works portfolio components. The exhibit is designed not only to showcase the rigor and excellence of the AP Art and Design portfolio but also as a teaching tool shared with AP Art and Design students worldwide. In this capacity, high-achieving students’ artwork and statements, teacher statements, and school leader statements help teach best practices and support arts advocacy.

Student participation in AP Art and Design requires that each student’s work is informed and guided by observation, research, experimentation, discussion, critical analysis, and reflection, relating individual practices to the art world. Students document their artistic ideas and practices to demonstrate conceptual and technical development to create a portfolio of work. Portfolios include works of art and design, process documentation, and written information about the work presented. In May, students submit portfolios for evaluation based on specific criteria, which include skillful synthesis of materials, processes, and ideas and sustained investigation through practice, experimentation, and revision, guided by questions. Students become inventive artistic scholars who contribute to visual culture through art making.

“I am so proud of Islay’s amazing achievements,” says Andrew Anderson, Friday Harbor High School art teacher. “Islay’s hard work has been recognized and celebrated earning multiple awards and honors. She received top scores on both of her AP Studio Art Drawing and 2D portfolios. The College Board sent her letters congratulating her on earning the highest possible score in every rubric category on both portfolios, placing her in the top 1.2% of all portfolios submitted.”

“Washington State selected her work to be displayed in the State Capital Building as part of its permanent collection. She was also awarded several Gold Key awards from Scholastics Arts and Writing Competition. Ultimately, the quality of Islay’s portfolio submission clearly illustrates her exceptional technical skills and creative thought process. She is the third student in the past 10 years from Friday Harbor High School whose portfolio has been selected by the College Board.”

“Building this portfolio has been an incredibly personal journey,” Islay says. “I’ve loved having the opportunity to explore my artistic voice through this class, and I am beyond excited and proud to share my work with all of you. I hope it’s inspiring to see the end result of so many hours of hard work — conceptualizing, creating, writing. It’s a multifaceted process.”

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