First GLN Scholarship winner announced
The Kent Historical Society is delighted to announce the winner of the 2015 George Laurence Nelson Art Scholarship. Stefanie Lalvay of Sharon, a senior at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, has won the award.
The Historical Society’s Scholarship committee was impressed with Ms. Lalvay’s application. Lalvay created an eye-catching photo blog that included an elaborate series of shoots at locations in in Manhattan and Brooklyn, involving models, costumes, and intrepid logistical savvy. The creativity and problem-solving resourcefulness of what she produced struck the judges. One judge said, “Stefanie’s good school record was only part of her story. Her tenacity at achieving her goals really won us over, especially her weekly travels into New York City to FIT to take courses outside of her school curricula.”
The award was presented June 23 during the Senior Awards at Housatonic Valley Regional High School. Executive Director Brian Thomas lauded Ms. Lalvay’s application.
The George Laurence Nelson Art Scholarship awards $1,000 to a student who is a graduate of any Region One school or whose family are residents of any of the Region One towns (Canaan, Cornwall, Falls Village, Kent, Salisbury and Sharon). It is available to graduating high school seniors intending to further their education in studio art or art history.
The judges include Kent artist Scott Bricker, Al Coffill (the recently retired art teacher at Kent Center School), professor and artist Edward Little, and gallery owner Tim Good.
George Laurence Nelson, 1887-1978, left New York City, falling in love with northwestern Connecticut, and moved to Kent in the early 1900’s. He was a founder of the Kent Art Association and the Litchfield Hills Art Colony. In 1916 he married Hermine Redgrave, later known as Helen, and together they restored their 1751 house and store, naming it Seven Hearths, creating magnificent perennial flower gardens. Son of two internationally known artists and a member of the National Academy of Design, Nelson was a noted 20th century artist whose works were widely exhibited in New York City and in Europe. His portraits and florals, in oils and water colors, are still collected today.