by Evan Goodrich.

Junior Ashley Silvestro, unlike many artists, delved into the art world at a much later age.

“I got interested in art in eighth grade, and I was inspired by Mrs. Cardinale,” Silvestro said, while working ardently on her art piece in pastel. “To be honest, I was never really good at anything and she kinda took me under her wing and she would just give me work and say ‘Draw this’ and I would and it would turn out to be really good.”

Silvestro’s medium of choice is chalk pastel.

“It’s really loose and it feels really good,” she said.

Her favorite piece portrays a woman’s form with vines and lines intertwining around her in vivid colors.

“I’m thinking about just calling it ‘The Woman’, just very simple and vague.”

Silvestro enjoys exploring controversial subject matter in her artwork, namely social issues.

“I like to touch on religion because that’s an emotional subject, a lot of sexuality,” she said.

Silvestro, like many budding artists, wishes to pursue an artistic career.

“I would love to be in an art field,” Silvestro said. “I’ve always wanted to be someone who creates artwork [for a living]. I’d like to go into architecture or something of that nature.”

Silvestro cites her art teachers as contributing much to her growth as an artist.

“Mrs. Cardinale, like I mentioned before, and Ms. McManus [were supportive]. My father’s starting to take an interest in it which really means a lot to me,” she said.