Whether it is working on a new AP art piece or creating a new printmaking stencil, junior Luke Saccone can be found all across the art department and beyond. Ever since Saccone was little, he has enjoyed drawing. “I guess it started from the superheroes in the cartoons I was watching,” he remarked. Doodling on any possible surface, and slowly refining what would become a distinct style that anyone in the art department knows, Saccone’s artistic process has been one he has been perfecting ever since his early years.
Now, Saccone’s artistic ventures have gone beyond doodles, and he has developed a significant artistic repertoire. “[Through taking art classes], I have learned a lot more about how things work and look in real life, like proportions and perspective. This has transformed my technique. My practices have changed by putting more time into the sketches. My taste has definitely changed now that I know what to look for in good art,” Saccone explained. This
year, Saccone took Advanced Placement Studio Art, the highest level art course LHS has to offer. In the course, students make over 15 pieces to synthesize a compound portfolio consisting of a ‘Sustained Investigation’ with a selected theme of their choice. Saccone’s theme this year was ‘Modern Day Warriors,’ where he depicted a number of different facets of Mixed Martial Art fighting, capturing all of the components of MMA fights, from the athletes themselves to the roaring crowds and rushing medics.
Saccone’s AP Art class helped broaden the breadth of his portfolio drastically, allowing him to expand into new mediums he had not previously explored. “I really liked working with graphite and pen,” Saccone confessed, “but I plan on becoming better and learning new mediums like acrylic and oil paint.” Saccone’s desire to expand his medium usage shines through his AP Art portfolio; dynamic drawings of MMA athletes are depicted via various mediums such as blue ballpoint pen and colored pencil, across cardboard and illustration paper as canvases.
Beyond Saccone’s ventures into art in school, he pursues his passions beyond Lynbrook, all the way to Dumbo in Brooklyn. Working for multimedia artist Craig Anthony Miller, Saccone cuts and measures canvas, transfers sketches, and paints backgrounds. Saccone plans to go into the city more frequently in the summer to help Miller and gain more experience in working as an artist. “He inspires me to become a professional,” Saccone mused. But
Saccone’s encouragement to further his own artistic career is rooted in communal support. “My parents and my whole family have been very supportive of my art,” he continued. “All of my art teachers from elementary to high school have seen a lot of potential in me as well.” This encouragement has led Saccone to submit to a number of art competitions, particularly in the last year, including the Congressional Art Competition, hosted by the United States House of Representatives, as well as Nassau County’s All-County Art Competition.
After high school, Saccone plans on furthering his art career: “I plan on becoming better and learning new mediums like acrylic and oil paint. [Also,] I hope I get to make a career out of my art in the future.”
