As students return for the new school year, Campbell Hall once again becomes an environment to grow and celebrate its community’s artists. Kaity-Rae Blank ‘26 shares in this celebration, being an artist who has frequently produced and shared her work with our school community. As she begins her junior year, she looks forward to the growing opportunities and experiences she will continue to face during her artistic career.
Although Blank has been making art since she was young, particularly painting and pencil-drawings, she has also struggled with having creative self-worth and motivation to regularly create new artworks. Despite this, she does her best to overcome them by making sure to practice as often as she can. Blank also urges artists struggling with similar difficulties to do the same, underlining how important it is to continue sharpening their skills.
“I really struggle with art block and consistently producing new work, because I am a perfectionist and I always overthink what I’m doing or trying to perfect it [from the start,]” Blank said. “In the end what matters most is you’re improving and practicing. It’s not so much the quality of each piece you do, or the quality you judge it to be, because it can be different for everyone. I would definitely [encourage new artists] to practice every day.”
Although Blank has experimented with many different kinds of artwork including painting, drawing, digital and sculpture, the one that inspires her most is the late 19th century Art Nouveau style. Originally birthed in late 1800s Europe, the detailed linework and soft plant motifs quickly gave rise to the style’s popularity, flourishing among the more rigid and mechanical works of the industrialized period. Blank emphasizes this aspect of Art Nouveau, as many primary characteristics of the style appear frequently in her illustrations.
“My favorite artists [are from the Art Nouveau period,] and I’m really interested in the lineart from those artworks,” Blank said. “I love the concept of Art Nouveau and the way it [was popularized]; how it really made people want to embrace more organic and natural designs [is really interesting to me.] Mundane, everyday objects could be turned into something beautiful, like doorknobs or pieces of furniture [for example.] The whole idea of Art Nouveau is just very beautiful.”
Like many other artists, Blank spent much of her early art career frequently attending art classes outside of school. She appreciates these experiences, and understands how these classes have taught her more traditional and practical methods of art. Blank is grateful for how Campbell Hall’s varying and diversified art classes have helped her in breaking away from these traditional techniques.
“I went to art classes [often] as a kid, and I learned a lot of very technical skills,” Blank said. “I think my whole art journey has been me trying to deviate from that technical process and embrace more creativity in my art. Campbell Hall’s [art classes] have really helped me [in that process.] I don’t think I would be the artist I am today without all the art classes I’ve taken at Campbell Hall; there’s so many opportunities for students to learn [a lot of] different mediums and styles.”