Marksmen Earn National YoungArts Recognition

Each year, thousands of high school artists from across the country submit their work to YoungArts, one of the nation’s most prestigious platforms for emerging talent. This year, Sebastian Gonzalez ’26 and Drew Wallace ’26 earned top recognition among the 49 high school photographers honored nationwide, with distinctions as a YoungArts "Winner with Distinction" and "Winner." Their achievements add to a long-standing tradition of excellence within the St. Mark’s photography program.

For Sebastian, national recognition emerged from experimentation and intellectual curiosity. His portfolio centers on the increasingly complex world of artificial intelligence. “It's hard to pin down an experience that specifically made me want to create work on that topic; I don't think it's unusual for AI to be something an artist is worried about, the hard part is really figuring out how you can convey ideas that are pretty complex through individual images,” he said. Studying past YoungArts work pushed him to explore new mediums. “Once I began looking at past winners and other student work from other schools, I realized that mixed media, which is something we don't normally do at St. Mark’s, was a medium through which I could more effectively get my points across, and from there I just started experimenting.”

Drew’s project grew from a very different place: a personal turning point that reshaped his adolescence. “The inspiration behind my project revolves primarily around a traumatic brain injury I had in 7th grade, and the long term effects of the injury itself and the process of recovery during some of the most tumultuous and formative years of my life,” he explained. “The portfolio was intended to be a kind of visual exploration of my mind, and an attempt at interpreting and expressing the convoluted and irregular body of experiences, beliefs, and patterns of thought that have governed my life following the injury.” What began as introspection evolved into a visual language for understanding himself. “This project was ultimately an exercise in introspection, and an effort to not only visually express my story, but also to process and understand my own experience.”

The YoungArts program recently restructured its awards, with Winners with Distinction representing the top ten students in each discipline and qualifying for a weeklong intensive in Miami and potential nomination as U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts, announced each May. Winners comprise the next 40–50 strongest submissions nationally.

St. Mark’s has a notable history with YoungArts success. Since 2004, Marksmen have accumulated 26 Winners with Distinction and 37 Winners across photography, ceramics, wood and metal, and other visual arts, with five ultimately becoming U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts.

Photography teacher and Tony Vintcent Fine Arts Department Chair Scott Hunt sees these latest honors as the result of deep engagement and artistic courage. “Having two YoungArts Winners in a given year is a testament to our students’ willingness to face difficult challenges, continually striving to overcome those challenges, and learning to thrive in the process,” Hunt said. “St. Mark’s has developed a community where the arts are woven into the fabric of our culture.”

For both students, Hunt’s mentorship played a central role. Sebastian described the early stages of proposal writing as rigorous but essential. “We spend a lot of time in class submitting ideas and artist statement proposals before actually starting to create images, and during that time Mr. Hunt always tries to get to the bottom of the ideas we put forward: after the third time he asks you ‘Why?’ you realize very quickly whether your project is something that has a concrete foundation and a serious personal motivation or if you are just imagining cool photos you could take.” That clarity became transformative. “It's a difficult process to get to the point where you can concisely and confidently articulate the thoughts behind the art you make, but once you get there I think you find that it's just as valuable as the art itself.”

Drew had a similar experience facing the distance between vision and execution. “I remember watching the seniors working on their portfolios when I was a sophomore and beginning to think about what I would do for mine,” he said, noting that his ideas had been forming for years. But when senior year arrived, he realized his initial concept needed to change. “I had spent so much time thinking and conceptualizing… but when senior year began and the deadline was approaching rapidly, I had to completely rethink my approach to the project and let go of a lot of the concepts I had been holding onto.” Finding cohesion in a deeply personal story became his greatest challenge.

Together, Sebastian and Drew extend St. Mark’s legacy of artistic excellence, demonstrating the power of inquiry, resilience, and deeply personal storytelling. Their achievements remind the community that when students are supported in exploring both the world and themselves, extraordinary work follows. “More than anything, I think this will be a source of impetus, and a kind of reassurance in what I’m doing… this will serve as a reminder that there is a place for my work and what I’m doing is not in vain,” Drew said.