John Cooper School alumna has sculpture selected for AP exhibit

THE WOODLANDS, Texas -- The concentration piece that The John Cooper School alumna Grace Ritch (’17) included in her Advanced Placement (AP) Studio Art 3D Portfolio was accepted into the 2017-18 AP Studio Art Exhibit.

Entitled “The 12 Stages of Grief,” Ritch’s work is currently on display at the Brodsky Gallery of the Chauncey Center in Princeton, New Jersey, and will be shown through October 5. In July 2018, the exhibit will be a featured event of the AP Annual Conference to be held in Houston.

A team of AP Studio Art teachers and college faculty selected the work from over 60,000 portfolios that were entered in the AP Studio Art Exam in May 2017. Works were chosen as exemplars of the highest levels of achievement of AP Studio Art students.

“They demonstrate the diversity of ideas, materials, processes and forms within the portfolios,” said Wendy Free, PhD, Director of Arts Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment, Advanced Placement of The College Board. “These works honor the teaching and learning that led to their creation, and serve as resources and inspiration to art students and art educators.”

Ritch and her instructor, Cooper visual arts teacher Emily Taylor, were each asked to submit either an audio or video statement about the work.

“My inspiration came from appreciation for sculpting the human form,” Ritch shared in her video submission. “I am interested in the universality of how people deal with grief and loss,” she said. “We all transition through the same stages of grief.” Her piece includes 12 heads that are half the size of a life-sized head, with facial expressions that transition through the emotions. “I enjoy art that moves me emotionally, so I wanted to create something that would do the same for my viewers,” Ritch said.

In her audio submission, Taylor, who has taught at Cooper for 13 years, reflected on teaching Ritch for the last four years. “Grace has always shown a passion for the material, strong concept development and an incredible attention to detail, not to mention the dedication she has for her art,” Taylor said. “The culmination of years of hard work is her piece, “The 12 Stages of Grief.”’

Ritch, who will attend The University of Texas at Austin this fall, is the third Cooper visual arts student to achieve this high honor. Colin Kelly (’03) and Elizabeth Karlsson (’07) were also invited to display their AP sculptures in AP Studio Art exhibits.