Nighthawks' ARTifacts Project

During weekly meetings, our Nighthawks Teen Leadership Program continues to explore themes and exhibitions offered by the Edward Hopper House. This month, we placed our own creative practices in conversation with the exhibition Object Lessons. We each chose an object that relates to our identity, and then created an artwork inspired by that object. The diverse processes, materials, and ideas that resulted from this project represent the dynamic range of personalities in our group. We hope you enjoy this sample of our work!
I chose to paint my rabbit Otis. Watercolor is my favorite medium and it is perfect for capturing the soft texture of the fur.
- AB
In case it wasn’t clear, my face is the art piece and the rock is what I based it on. It was one of several parting gifts I received as I was leaving boarding school last year, but this painted stone with the words “stay true and speak your mind, because those who matter don’t mind and those who mind don’t matter” on the back held a significance to me. It was so representative of my personal experience of living away from home, among a community of people attempting to grow, recover, and just find ourselves. As for the art I made, I like to embody my work which is why I chose my face as the canvas. I am so grateful to Nighthawks for giving me such a constructive creative outlet and a new, even more positive community to create alongside. 
​ - CB
My object of inspiration was a comic book. It's not a specific comic book but I have a lot lying around. I based the colors in my work off some of the superheroes and I used oil paint and cutouts from comic books. 
-DB
My artwork was inspired by my stuffed bear, which has gotten me through a lot over the years, and as we've both had our stitches torn from time to time, I figured it would be the perfect subject. This sketch goes to show that we are never alone, even in our darkest moments. 
​- MD
The object I have chosen is a deck of cards as I almost never leave the house without a set with me. I paired two of my favorite things to create an ongoing art project. Here I painted a cover from different classic and influential novels onto the back of each card. 
- NV
My artwork is titled “It’s Certainly a Thrill” and reflects on the joy and lifelong love of music the Beatles gave to me when I was around the age of 4. It was created using the object that inspired it a “Sergeant Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band” record and acrylic paint. The little girl on the bottom is my younger self painted to imitate the simple black and white shots of the Beatles at the end of their 60s film “Hard Day’s Night”. The piece reflects on the great childish joy that music can bring and that simple enthusiasm can bring young people to create great art. 
- VvW
I was inspired by the Ukrainian Easter Egg because it is a part of my culture. I chose to make it extremely detailed and a real Pysanka is very colorful and detailed, so I decided to make mine as exact as possible.
-YD

The object that I chose is a medical textbook. I’m the type of person who is focused on the future and where I want to go. This object inspired me to create a few works of art that involve the human body and anatomy. I love learning about science and the body, so this object fit perfectly for the assignment. Although these works of art are just simple sketches, I loved learning about the body and incorporating science into my artwork. 
-ZS