Windsor student to be featured in new photography exhibit

A self portrait by Allison Flores.

Teachers describe Windsor High School junior Allison Flores as “ambitious, driven and fearless.” Flores is painter, photographer and writer who plans to attend college to study art and writing. Those who know her say she is an extremely talented artist with an excellent future.

Flores, 16, has long impressed people not just with her artistic use of a Nikon camera and her artist's eye, but with her 4.0 GPA and work in Advanced Placement classes, as well.

Flores works in all different art media, including painting, drawing, ceramic design, cut paper and a variety of work besides her photography. She started drawing as a child. When she was very little, she designed her own world and houses for her dolls, and wanted to be an architect until she understood it was all about the math.

From the time she was about 13, Flores took an interest in other people's pictures and photography. She soon realized she could do something with the medium herself.

“She was selected over 40 classmates in the Advanced Placement studio art courses at Windsor High to be the first student featured in the Hairdresser on Fire Artist Series,” said Katie Stinchon, the publicist for William Gleason of Manchester, the man behind the scenes who raises money for the scholarship fund and special program to highlight works of artists.

Gleason is an artist who makes his living as a master stylist and makeup artist. His efforts help mentor young people just entering the highly-competitive and multifaceted field of art. There are many ways to apply artistic skills that young people and many adults may not be aware are available.

Gleason spent most of his high school years in the art department and worries about communities with budget constraints cutting the art and music departments first. “As the state tightens its budget, the art and music departments are the first to feel its effects,” he wrote.

The goal of the Hairdresser on Fire series of gallery exhibitions is to bring the community together and highlight homegrown artists and gather donations for local nonprofits that support the arts, said Gleason.

It was important to Gleason that the first artist featured is a young person.

Flores has a track record of recognition beyond the artwork itself. According to her teacher Marjorie Renno, Flores was awarded a scholarship to attend an intensive week-long program last year at the Savannah College of Art and Design where she worked in acrylics and digital photography. After the workshop, Flores and her work began to “mature dramatically,” according to her teacher.

When the National Association of Schools of Art and Design began hosting National Portfolio Day at schools around the country, Flores was submitting her work as an underclassman among seniors applying to college. She wanted feedback before she ever began applying for admission.

“It shows a lot of maturity to have your work critiqued and take constructive feedback,” noted Renno. “She always returned with improvement, really heeding their advice. That's what sets her apart from other students and it's why when William called asking who from my classes should be featured in the exhibition, I chose her.”

Allison Flores’ works will be on display at the first show of the Hairdresser on Fire Series opening on Friday, Feb. 10, from 6 to 8 p.m. at 176 Broad St., in Windsor. Admission is free and open to the public. Donations for the Windsor High School Art Department Scholarship Fund will be accepted. This fund awards scholarships to graduating seniors admitted to college and gives financial assistance to all Windsor underclassmen to attend pre-college summer art programs.

For more information, contact William@hairdressonfire.com or call 860-285-8841 or Katie Stinchon at 617-640-6990.