Are you interested in seeing a fantastic exhibit that features artwork created by current high school students? Since March 28, the Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) has been hosting “The Celebration” art exhibit. The installation showcases over 500 art and literary pieces created by New York City students from grades seven to 12.
Running until May 18 of this year, the annual exhibit honors the artwork of New York City students from over 250 schools in the five boroughs. All the students’ works displayed at the exhibit have received the highest recognition, and they are known as Gold Key Recipients. The 2025 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards program, which made this exhibit possible, was founded in 1923 and has recognized talented teens nationwide.
This year, more than 2,500 students in New York entered nearly 14,800 works to the New York City Region to be considered for regional and national recognition of awards, scholarships, publications and exhibitions. A panel of art and poetry professionals selected recipients that embody the Awards’ core values of skill, originality and personal voice.
The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards recognize students’ works across various media. The artistic mediums include photography, painting, sculpture and mixed media. Various literary media are also recognized, like poetry, fiction and novel writing. Students can submit their work to the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards website in order to share their work with the world. The Alliance for Young Artists and Writers is a nonprofit organization that presents the awards and aims to identify talented artistic and literary works of students.
The exhibit is located at the Ruth and Harold D. Uris Center for Education on the Met’s ground floor. The exhibit is free for New York City residents and students since the museum has a “pay-as-you-wish” policy.
My favorite piece of art at the museum was “Screenlight Solitude” by Lucy Chen, a junior at Stuyvesant High School. This piece features the effects that social media apps like TikTok and Instagram have on the main subject in the drawing. Another captivating piece at the exhibit was “Anxiety” by Mel’lahnee Blackwell, a junior at St. Francis Preparatory School. This painting embodies a realistic abstraction style, combining realistic depictions with abstract elements.
In addition to the physical art displayed, the exhibit had a video installation of digital artwork and pieces that could not be present at the time. This offers an alternative viewing experience, where you can view the artworks at a larger scale. Another medium of art displayed at the exhibit was photography and digital art. One notable digital art piece was “Bleeding Seeds” made by Madeline Berberian-Hutchinson, who is a senior at Stuyvesant High School. Berberian-Hutchinson is also a poet and has recently received awards for her poetry from the City College of New York.
Although all the artwork at the exhibit embodied different styles, it remained unified in celebrating the talented works of the young and aspiring New York City students. Featuring young artists in museums is important for fostering artistic development amongst the art community. By seeing the artwork of fellow peers in a prestigious museum, young artists can be motivated to follow their own passions in life. This exhibition of young artists’ work can inspire a new generation of artists, by emphasizing that the art community is open and accepting new perspectives.
Museums, like the Met, have the power to contribute to a cycle of creativity, where new artistic expressions can continue to be developed. By showcasing the works of young and talented students, museums can represent a broader range of voices, perspectives and themes in the art world.
If you want to see the work of the next generation of artists and writers firsthand, this exhibit is the place for you. This annual exhibition offers the opportunity to see young artists before they have been established. The artistic and literary works explore bold themes — such as mental health, social justice or climate change — that are authentic in a unique way, in comparison to usual exhibits. Whether you want to see an abstract painting, read a bold poem or view a realistic portrait, there is bound to be art that speaks to you!
