A still life by St. Mark’s senior Collin Katz.
The photography program at St. Mark’s School of Texas has won an award for the 14th time in 15 years.
The Preston Hollow private school’s program was named the “Top Program” by the Association of Texas Photography Instructors.
A panel of six judges evaluates submissions from public and private schools, which submit three portfolios containing 10 images each. Portfolios are submitted in different categories, and each receives points by the judges.
St. Mark’s presented for judging portfolios in the commercial/advertising, portrait and still-life categories. The program is led by Scott Hunt, the Arnold E. Holtberg Master Teaching Chair and photography instructor.
“There’s a lot of pressure that comes along with continuing the streak, but there’s also a sense of satisfaction from knowing that the effort the seniors and Mr. Hunt put in to teach the underclassmen is paying off,” senior Jerry Zhao says in a St. Mark’s article. “You can’t win Top Program by yourself, and it requires good work across the board from everyone.”
Marksmen whose work was entered in the competition include: seniors Jerry Zhao, Blake Hudspeth, Luke Voorheis and Collin Katz; juniors Evan Lai, Evan McGowan, Anashay Monga, Paul Valois, Drake Elliot, Owen Simon, Ekansh Tambe and Nicolas Gomez; sophomore Renil Gupta; and freshman Hudson Brown.
The ATPI “works to help the photography instructors of all disciplines work to achieve a higher quality of knowledge and teaching of photography,” according to the nonprofit organization’s website. It hosts several contests and scholarships each year, and the highest award is the Star of Texas, which is given to individuals and companies that have contributed to photo education in the state.
To read more about the arts at St. Mark’s, click here.
