Students practice their painting skills under the instruction of professional artist, Ms. Megan Lenzzo.
The night before the ACTs, Choate students gathered in the PMAC gallery to participate in Choate’s first-ever “Paint Night.” The event was led by local artist Ms. Megan Lenzzo and organized by Mr. Vincent Jones of the Student Activities Center.
Paint Night was held on Friday, April 8 from 8-10 p.m. and attracted students from the third, fourth, and fifth forms. At the beginning of the class, Ms. Lenzzo set each student up with a blank canvas and an array of different colors to begin their pieces. Ms. Lenzzo painted a simple and colorful silhouette of a bird in front of the class and dictated the steps as she progressed. Students had the option of following along or creating an individual masterpiece.
Mr. Jones, the organizer of the event, noted that the night was a great way for students to “practice seizing an opportunity to tap into their creative energies.” At the event, Mr. Jones set up a speaker and streamed pop music in the background. Sabastian Chacon ’19 noted, “the music really helped me focus on my art.”
Ms. Lenzzo was very impressed with the PMAC, referring to it as “beautiful” and “inspiring.” She was also impressed by the independence of the students in attendance, noting that the particular class “didn’t need much instruction,” was very “advanced,” and “made the class their own.”
While multiple students opted to follow along with Ms. Lenzzo’s lesson, a few decided to create pieces all their own. Truelian Lee ’17 chose to splatter paint and Katrina Gonzalez ’17 painted two rolling hills covered in little flowers. Lauren Dorsey ’18, another artist in attendance, noted that despite having “no artistic talent, the teacher’s simple instructions helped me actually come up with a real piece of art.”
For many students, the event was a great way to relax after a long and arduous week. Dorsey commented, “It was such a great opportunity to learn something new while in a relaxed setting. It was especially nice to have down time before the ACT.” Chacon also noted that the night gave him an opportunity to simply “take his mind off of schoolwork.”
Paint Night was a complete success. It fully achieved its main goal: to provide a relaxing setting for students to explore their artistic abilities. In the future, if you ever need to relax, maybe try painting. If you are not yet convinced of its powers, show up to a Paint Night – Ms. Lenzzo hopes to facilitate another in the future.
