Kenneth Rutsky, who earned both Fine Arts and Individual Studies degrees at Hudson Valley Community College, is one of three recipients of a 2023 “Best of SUNY” award for his painting, “Hiding in Plain Sight” (shown below). The annual exhibition, established in 2002, features outstanding work by undergraduate and graduate art students at SUNY’s 64 campuses and is mounted at the H. Carl McCall SUNY Building in Albany. (Details of a reception for the exhibition are yet to be announced.)
Rutsky’s painting was completed while he was enrolled in Advanced Study in Drawing and Painting. Designed for students who’ve completed foundation fine arts courses and wish to pursue their own body of work, Advanced Study is two semesters of guided study with Professor Thomas Lail.
In November 2022, SUNY announced that seven students enrolled in HVCC’s Fine Art, Theatre Arts and Digital Media Program were selected for the Best of SUNY exhibition. In addition to Rutsky, Elizabeth Amaya-Flores, Ryan Bruce, Raquel Kafka and Mya Rice, all Fine Arts students, and Kyle Melican and Cassandra Sagnelli, Digital Media students, have work in the exhibit.
Fine Arts and Digital Media faculty nominate student work for submission to the Best of SUNY exhibition, where they are reviewed with all other entries. The three Best of Show prizes include a $1,000 scholarship and four Honorable Mentions include a $500 scholarship.
