By Kimberly Didsbury

On Saturday December 3rd, ASAP, or the After School Arts Program, held a celebration of young photographers at Arethusa Farm in Litchfield. ASAP supports all forms of art, from literary to culinary and even martial. They run programs like this celebration of young photographers for people all over the state of Connecticut, from young children to adults. They offer over 100 workshops to more than 4,000 participants. This year was the first time they ran this photography contest, but the response was very impressive. The theme was “Perspectives on Home” and participants were asked to submit a photo that represented home to them. It could be anything, and the photographs showcased the many different perspectives of home that there are. Grades 3-12 took part in the contest, and one winner from each grade level was chosen by the panel of judges, which included Miki Duisterhof, John Kane, Visko Hatfield, Joseph Montebello, Peter Rogness, Kathryn McCarver Root, Barbara Hyde Talbot, and Jeffrey Tillou. An additional 54 kids’ pictures were displayed at the farm on Saturday. An impressive 13 students from our very own Pomperaug High School were honored in the display.

Myself, along with two other Phoenix writers, Megan Cascella and Nicole Mulready, had our photos selected. (Kimberly’s, Megan’s, and Nicole’s photos can be seen by clicking through the slideshow on the right.) I made the trip up to Litchfield to see the photos, as did most of the other winners. Ms. Rosenberg also came to support us at the event. There was a room attached to the barn which held the photographs, framed and hung, and another with some delicious farm-grown food for everyone. The relaxed farm environment made the viewing enjoyable and it was great to see other student’s photographs and learn about their perspectives of home. Megan Cascella says “I was very honored to have been selected…All in all it was a really great experience; you got to see other people’s work, most of which was really stunning.” She also gave compliments to the farm’s chocolate milk and ice cream, which we were able to sample at the gallery. Overall, the contest was very well organized and the showing was a very good experience. Congratulations to all the Pomperaug students who were selected!