Draw-A-Thon Draws A Dedicated Crowd

To students at Saint Bernard School’s, May 14 offered a sleepy Saturday morning, a day off from school, or a day to prepare for the evening’s prom. But 20 students gave all those up to compete for scholarships at the school’s 14th annual Draw-a-thon.

The contest ran from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the school’s Fine Arts Center. It was open to students in grades 8 through 12, who either currently attend Saint Bernard or will start next year. With a little help from teachers David Belval and Patty Kelly, each contestant created a still-life drawing for judging.

Students arrived to find a huge collection of objects filling the center of the classroom. Arranged on cloths and tables, there was everything from beakers to shopping bags to stepladders. The artists chose a place to sit, and then found 3 or 4 items to draw.

For the next 5 hours, they sketched and shaded those objects, using only lead pencils. Some were still trying to finish at the 1pm deadline.

After one, two Saint Bernard alumni began to judge the drawings. Each work was evaluated for its arrangement, rendering, detail, line quality, and perspective. The scores also include a handicap based on the students’ grade, in order to help younger artists compete with more experienced ones.

The 1st place winner will receive a $1,000 scholarship. The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place prizes are scholarships for $500, $150, and $100, respectively. These prizes will help cover the students’ tuition at Saint Bernard.

If senior wins, they can use the money for college instead. The winners should be chosen by Monday, May 16.

The students also get a chance to practice the skills they learned in art class.

“What’s interesting is they get to apply and develop the skills we talk about in here,” Belval said. “It’s always interesting to see what they come up with.”  

He also feels that the contest encourages the kids to work on a key element in the school’s art program.

“The idea is to encourage students to value observational drawing,” he said. “We’ve always had a reverence for observational drawing in this program.”

The contest, in some ways, helps teach in itself. Belval and Kelly also gave advice to some students during the contest. Kelly made notes of see areas the students should work on in class, too.

For some students, every chance to study art is important. One is junior Sarah Bentley, who is considering a career in arts.

“I’m thinking of majoring in illustration or painting,” she said. Bentley has participated in the Draw-a-thon every year, and was last year’s 2nd place winner.

Rubson Guimaraes is another student who hopes to use his drawing skills in his career. He hopes to become an architect or interior designer. He, too, has competed before, placing 1st last year. He was also a winner in this year’s Connecticut Scholastic Art Awards in Hartford.

However, the Draw-a-thon was an opportunity even for students not planning artistic careers. Molly Turban, an 8th-grader who will start at Saint Bernard’s next year, likes drawing for fun.

“I’d like to study art, but it’s just for fun,” she said.