Art Works!

Vyper LaTulippe ’19 

Vyper has been a dedicated ceramicist from the beginning of his time here at Tabor, spending many hours and weekends in the studio. Perhaps due to his complementary interest in engineering, his favorite expression of ceramics seems to be in the sculptural aspects of the craft. He developed his own unique style which was recognized in 2018 by the National K-12 Ceramic Exhibition, a juried competition where just 150 pieces are selected for exhibition out of 1300 submissions. A junior that year, he was awarded an artistic merit award by the juror, Pete Pinnell, received a cash prize from Bailey Pottery, and a $20,000 scholarship to Alfred University if he were to decide to study ceramics there. This fall, Vyper will be attending Alfred, beginning work on two degrees: a B.F.A. in Ceramics and a B.S. in Engineering.

Vyper credits Tabor with helping him to develop his interest and skill. He stated, “During my time at Tabor, I have found an everlasting passion for the ceramic arts. The studio has become my second home, offering me unlimited access to my creative ability. Being able to work with Mr. Arnfield has introduced me to a new artistic potential and provoked self-reflection in my current work. I hope to carry the spark of curiosity and discipline that has been instilled by Tabor into my upcoming years at Alfred University.”

His ceramics teacher Kevin Arnfield said, “Over the past few years at Tabor, Vyper’s developing ceramic work revealed a student who loves to design, engineer, put things together, and ultimately make visible and tangible his curious ideas and dreams. His inquiring mind has always had ample room for both scientific consideration and creative play. Consequently, his success with ceramic art sits at the potent intersection of process and materials (engineering) and creativity and imagination (art). Tabor’s offerings in art, ceramics, and engineering offered Vyper the place and the support to discover his unique ability and vision that merges science and art. Best of luck at Alfred University, Vyper!” 

For his senior project, Vyper decorated the entryways of our language classrooms with beautiful, historical tile panels, adding some cultural highlights to the language wing.

Savannah Leao ’19  

Savannah has always loved art. The seeds of this passion were first planted by her middle school art teacher, Ms. Eugenio, at Our Sisters’ School (OSS) in New Bedford, and have been further cultivated here at Tabor through studio art courses with Ms. Tricia Smith.

The culmination of her art experience at Tabor was a wonderful collaborative art show between Tabor and OSS students to celebrate art and her beloved communities of OSS, Tabor, and her Cape Verdean community. A fundraiser for Our Children’s Future, a non-profit created to help disadvantaged youth on the Cape Verde Islands, Savannah called the show “What is your Community?” The show opened in April in the Braitmayer Gallery, and students and faculty from both schools were in awe of what was produced! 

Working closely with Tabor’s art teacher, Tricia Smith, Savannah curated the show, carefully considering the artists’ statements submitted with over 40 pieces from 20 artists from Tabor and OSS. “Without Ms. Smith, I don’t know if I would have gone this far. She helped me so much.” Smith and Leao hung the show considering how each piece could best be displayed to communicate

Working closely with Tabor’s art teacher, Tricia Smith, Savannah curated the show, carefully considering the artists’ statements submitted with over 40 pieces from 20 artists from Tabor and OSS. “Without Ms. Smith, I don’t know if I would have gone this far. She helped me so much.” Smith and Leao hung the show considering how each piece could best be displayed to communicatethe intended theme of community. Savannah said, “I wanted to do something to give back and, until this, I didn’t really know what to do. I love art, so this show brought everything that I love together. It was just a perfect project for me.”