Hall High School is well known for its education system. People boast that Hall is recognized as one of America’s top high schools in the U.S. News & World Report’s 2016 National Rankings as well as has a Niche grade of ‘A’; so it isn’t surprising that the school is home to a few up-and-coming stars.

Brianna Castillo, a senior, has a passion for art. Brianna excels in sketching and has completed Drawing 1, Drawing 2, and is currently participating in AP Studio Art. She found her passion for art in middle school though she realized she wasn’t the best at drawing. However, with practice and dedication Brianna improved her skills and got significantly better.

When interviewed, Brianna was asked what inspired her to create her art, “Me. There’s never been a person who’s inspired me (in art). Drawing is a form of meditation.”

This meditation, or drive makes sense when someone has passion, it allows them to enjoy what they do and feel rewarded when doing it.

Brianna is always pushing her capabilities, loving the intense journey of improvement. She enjoys working on her art and enhancing her skills, this dedication and creativity produces lots of positive feedback from her friends like senior Destiny Fuller who said, “All of her drawings are done just with pencil. So, it’s a lot of work to do the shading. She doesn’t have anything easier so it shows that she’s dedicated to her work.”

“I still think she’ll be making art,” Destiny said regarding Brianna’s future after graduating Hall. Brianna’s passion for art and willingness to improve is quite evident when viewing her art and watching the process unfold onto the paper. With such talent Brianna’s peers have been able to view a much more unique side of her. This has lead to Brianna becoming known for her talent.

Brianna isn’t afraid to showcase her art to the school. In fact, her art has been put on display for the school to see via Art Show’s at school and in the hallways. Although that can be scary, she has the support of her art class to ease her of that anxiety. Brianna states: “In art class, I am surrounded by other artists, so we give each other advice, and we aren’t out for each other.” From this statement, it can be implied that those who create art at Hall are apart of a tight-knit community. Brianna’s art teacher, Mr. Loebell, verifies that art students at Hall are apart of close-knit community: “The community of art students [at Hall] support each other by giving feedback to each other, helping solve technical problems, and sometimes encouraging artists when they are unsure of their direction of work.” Brianna’s dedication, creativity and willingness to improve are appreciable reasons to be highlighted in Hall Record. These attributes help create a stronger, more talented school, thus awareness of creators like Brianna at Hall is essential.

Brianna Castillo, Picture taken by Sophia Finn-McMahon