William Floyd High School Class of 2025 graduate Lyla Angamarca Reino and current junior Emma Gunning recently had their artwork chosen for the 2025 New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA) Virtual Art Exhibit! This yearly exhibit, which is sponsored by the New York State Art Teachers Association (NYSATA), celebrates the outstanding work of student-artists from all across New York State.

“It means a lot that both Lyla and Emma were included in this exhibit to represent NYSATA Region 10,” said WFHS ceramics teacher Tina Higgins, who submitted both of their pieces for consideration this past school year. “I am so proud of both of them for this statewide nod to their creative endeavors!” In addition to being featured in the virtual display, Lyla and Emma’s pieces were also on display at the NYSSBA Convention in New York City in October.

Lyla, who was inspired by the vibrant colors and smooth movements of Vincent Van Gogh’s “Starry, Starry Night,” designed a dinner set depicting the famous painting. She used a slab-building technique to construct the plate and the cup and used additional subtractive carving techniques in order to create texture and lay the framework for her final design.

Emma designed a clay box with a calico cat (a cat with a tri-color coat of black, white and orange) peering over the removeable top. Like Lyla, Emma also used a slab-building technique to create her box and sculpted a cat’s head and paws on the top half. Ms. Higgins highlighted Emma’s great care in adding texture to the cat’s head and glazing the cat with a high level of detail.

Congratulations, Lyla and Emma!