2026 NJAHS Juried Exhibition

Drawing

I was inspired by the beauty and energy of coral reefs and marine biodiversity. Using colored pencil, I built layers of color and texture to create a lively underwater environment filled with motion and discovery. Creating art helps me share the beauty of nature with others.

Mixed Media – Best in Show

Art matters because when emotions and expressions can’t be conveyed by words, art acts as a circumvention. During the creation of this piece I experienced doubt, error, and frustration. In the end, my curiosity, patience, and dedication carried me through.

Experiential – Best in Show

I wanted to celebrate the joy of discovery I connect with reading. The rose symbolizes my love of words, and the butterflies escaping symbolize the way words written on a page can transform the way I think. This work represents new life and metamorphosis!

Drawing

I create art because it has always been a natural way for me to express myself. My interest in art began in my early childhood and slowly developed into a passion for drawing. I’m inspired by the dedication, detail, and intention skilled artists bring into their work, which motivates me.

Printmaking – Best in Show

This is the art classroom beside the teacher’s desk. I used patterns to show different objects.

Drawing

I mostly like this work of art because of all the details I was able to achieve while drawing it. I feel like it was not something I would normally think to draw, so it challenged me to try something new, and I actually think I did really well at capturing the value of light and form.

Painting

Art matters to me because it reflects my identity, culture, and voice. It shows me stories where I am powerful, creative, and seen through art. Through painting, music, and sculptures, I express my feelings and dreams. Art reminds me that my creativity is rich and my future limitless.

Sculpture

This Vespa piece was both a personal and group effort for our school dance theme, A Starry Night in Italy. Inspired by a 1950s teal countertop and detailed Pinterest photo. Art shows people how to express emotion and share their perspective, and it can bring light to difficult or meaningful moments.

Media Arts

My artwork reimagines survival and imagination across time. A lone girl stands between on ancient pasts, where dinosaurs roam the ice. The piece shows the timeless human instinct to endure the impossible worlds.

Drawing

This is a very inspirational piece. It shows the details, the patterns, the colors, and the love that goes with the piece. I learned so much from this daycare, and it’s amazing that I take an art piece as a symbol of my gratitude through the years.

Drawing

Art is important for multiple reasons. Creating artwork allows you to express yourself in many unique ways and helps artists relieve stress by giving them a path to communicate through their work. In conclusion, making art can be very beneficial for self-expression and can positively impact you.

Drawing

I painted this rainy-night bakery as a comfort place that feels safe and welcoming. I designed it for my cat, so I added fish tanks because she always watches mine, and I chose a bakery because she loves food. The warm light inside against the dark sky shows that cozy feeling of refuge and joy.

Drawing

This graphite drawing depicts two rendered hands lifting endangered animals in front of a city skyline. I created the piece primarily in graphite, which builds depth through layered shading, and intentionally kept the composition black and white except for the eye and the tear.

Drawing

I create art because it brings peace and calm to my mind. Inspired by Studio Ghibli, I imagined a dragon around a building and developed it into a scene from Spirited Away. This piece reflects creativity, personality, and the calm I feel while making art.

Sculpture – Best in Show

My project is a tree made from silver wire, which was curled up to make the stem and the branches of the tree. The butterflies are meant to represent growth and change while reflecting how I’m growing up and changing into something new, like butterflies eventually do.

Drawing

My artwork is a hyper realistic colored pencil drawing of waffle with syrup and fruits on top. I used Prismacolor for my project. I wanted to make the details as realistic as possible by making the syrup shine and giving the holes of the waffle’s depth to make them 3D.

Drawing

The charcoal drawing shows that even though I do not live in Korea and have less exposure to Korean culture than Korean natives, I stand strong with my heritage. The drawing shows a strong, resilient girl who stands in front of Korea’s national park upon her rippling reflection.

Painting – Best in Show

This painting shows both awareness and survival. The girl at the front seems troubled, while the man behind her focuses on meeting his basic need. I wanted to show the gap between those who see hardship and those who experience it everyday.

Media Arts

In a quiet moment of fragile peace, an old man cools himself, unaware of the silent power slowly approaching him. Unexpected Guest explores the thin line between serenity and danger, reminding us that life’s most profound moments and often arrive without warning.

Folk Arts & Crafts

For this project I made a sea turtle. The sea turtle I made had many colors, like dark green, light green, yellow, orange, and blue. I made a sea turtle because they symbolize longevity, wisdom, endurance, and good luck. I really like this project and am really proud of it.

Drawing – Best in Show

I created this work by layering oil pastel colors over black paper. My main idea lies in expressing the essence of the soul and the world around me. I struggle to express my emotions. I do it by applying color to create beauty, and I hope others will eventually feel this experience too.

Folk Arts & Crafts

For this project I made a teapot out of clay because I really like the idea of the Chinese lunar year zodiac; the fact that just by your year you have an animal as your personality is really cool to me. It was hard because I wanted everything to be perfect so quickly.

Drawing

Art is one of the most vital forms of self-expression there is. It can be a healthy way to release emotions, convey specific messages, and test people’s perception of things. By sharing each other’s unique perspectives, it creates a bridge between different lived experiences.

Sculpture

I created a shoe stuck in gum made of cardboard and fabric. I created it to show how people worry too much about unnecessary things. A creased shoe caught in gum seems like a problem, but it’s minor. This highlights how small imperfections are often exaggerated in today’s society.

Painting

My work is a still life utilizing acrylic and gouache paint. As I was creating this, I tried my best to capture the textures and shadows on the tangerine.

Media Arts

I created this as a series of portraits on Google Drawings. I wanted to portray the model and her features in a way that made them stand out and emphasize her beauty. I used pinks and reds to put emphasis on the woman’s features and to create a sense of unity throughout the piece.

Folk Arts & Crafts

My piece is a clay work containing a skillet with two eggs and two strips of bacon. It was inspired by a memory I had trying and enjoying breakfast in an actual skillet at a restaurant.

Drawing

My drawing captures the weight of reflection etched into an aging face. Through stark charcoal contrasts, light confronts shadow as memory confronts consequence. The man’s expression is a landscape of regret, resilience, and time where every wrinkle speaks of choices made.

Drawing

Art is super important because it lets us express how we feel without using words. It helps people share their culture and history with the world. Making art is also a great way to relax and be creative. Plus, it makes life way more interesting and colorful for everyone.

Printmaking

This is a relief print made by carving into a rubber block. I used the reductive print process, each color was printed on top of the previous after carving that color away. I have a cute cat with flowers in the background, showing unity by using the same colors throughout the print.

Painting

This painting shows a sea turtle and polar bear overlapping where their eyes meet, symbolizing connection despite differences. Although they live in opposite worlds, both face climate change and care for their families. It represents how we are all different, yet deeply linked.

Sculpture

I created this sculpture using dried eggshells to transform everyday materials into art. I built a cardboard structure and used glycerin, agar, and coconut oil to bind the shells and form a chicken. By reusing overlooked materials, I show how ordinary objects can gain new meaning through creativity.

Painting

I was inspired by an image of a sunset and I believe it’s a beautiful scene. Over multiple weeks I worked on this piece, starting with an outline, moving to underpainting, and then adding color. In the end I was really happy by how everything turned out and I just want to show my painting to the world.

Drawing

Sea turtles have been around for more than 100 million years. Their population is getting smaller, so I made only one turtle to show that they are endangered. I chose the name “Honu kai” because it means “sea turtle” in Hawaiian. Please save the turtles, and do not litter our oceans.

Drawing

Art is important because it is essential to express emotions or feelings. Art is also a way to connect with others through emotion or simply sharing a hobby. It helps us understand different perspectives and people. It allows us to be creative and find great comfort in a well-known hobby.

Drawing

I used a marker technique that I tried before and this time, I got inspiration from another person’s work and drew with the pen. I used unique colors to make it improve. When I visited New York before, it was really cool, so I wanted to make an artwork about it.

Media Arts

Temptation captures the fragile moment when a whispered secret becomes a burden. One voice leans in with desire, while the other recoils in quiet frustration, caught between curiosity and resistance. The work explores how intimacy can blur into pressure, and choice into conflict.

Photography – Best in Show

For this piece, inspired by Cindy Sherman, I took a series of close-up photos of my own eyes with varying stages of makeup and expression in each one. My theme was abuse of power and the effect that cosmetics has had on women and the economy.