As people in awe huddle around a table filled with his photographs, primarily taken of his friends throughout senior year, during the AP Studio Art exhibition, Andrew Skrobak (12) observes with a smile on his face as his fellow students leave words of kindness or drawings written in sharpie on his pictures.

Ever since the seventh grade, Andrew has been immersing himself in a world full of all different aspects of art, especially in film photography. Although photography and modern technology are completely intertwined nowadays, he pursues a more old-fashioned form of photography by developing film instead.

“I choose the most inconvenient ways of pursuing photography.” he said. “I develop photos rather than taking digital ones, and I’ll just spend five hours every weekend in my dark room that I set up in the bathroom of my dad’s house. Even though it’s time consuming, I gravitate towards this method because it gives you the opportunity to be alone, which I think is really important.”

Through photography, Andrew has been able to accomplish and gain much more recognition for his work than he expected during his time in high school.

“I have taken photos at a lot of concerts with artists that I really look up to, and I’ve even been able to interact with them. I’ve been able to take photos officially backstage, which has sort of exposed me to more professional photography,” Andrew said.

Yet, although he has made considerable progress in his journey with photography, he hasn’t always had an easy time revealing his work to others.

“I’m really uncomfortable bragging about things. I guess it could be seen as something good about me, but I feel like it causes some people to dismiss the merit of my art because I haven’t really shown it, even though it’s the single most important thing in my life,” he said.

However, he recently created a website so that he can express his voice through photography, and people are given the opportunity to see his artwork online.

“It’s always sort of been an internal battle as to how much I want to display my work or not, but by putting myself out there and sharing my artwork through my website, I’m trying to combat that feeling and gain more confidence,” Andrew said.

His photography and AP studio art teacher, Joshua Martinez, reflects on Andrew’s process with finding his confidence artistically, and how his work has improved throughout their time of knowing each other.

“His confidence with his work has been something he’s been working on ever since I met him,” Martinez said. “Yet, I think he’s been making huge strides over the years in all parts of his creative practice by immersing himself in the larger artistic community outside of Harker and ensuring that his work is both culturally and personally relevant at the same time.”

His friend since elementary school, Abhinav Joshi (12), gives insight into Andrew’s personality beyond the reticent side of him.

“At first, I think he can come across as in another world or very reserved, but if you actually just take a second to get to know him, he’s honestly just the nicest, most genuine, and especially most passionate guy you’ll ever meet,” Abhinav said.

Primarily, Andrew likes to utilize photography to capture the little details in life.

“I try to take pictures of really subtle moments or things that provoke questioning. I’ve been taking lots of photos at school because I’m fascinated by the uncomfortability and how nobody likes it, yet it’s super formative.” Andrew said.

His motivation for photography also derives from his inner curiosity, and he wants that to be portrayed in his photographs.

“I think my interest in photography just sources from this fundamental interest in thinking or maybe even overthinking,” Andrew said. “I just like trying to find a reason for everything, so for me, photography helps to synthesize these bigger concepts and find answers in a way.”

After busy days, Andrew is not only able to find a time for peace and quiet through developing film in his dark room but also through reflecting in his journal.

“I think journaling is really helpful, and I turn to it at least once a day. I like to reevaluate how I’m doing because I think it’s super beneficial, and I can also potentially look back on it to be a better person for my friends and form better relationships,” Andrew said.

His friend since middle school, Christopher Leafstand (12), who Andrew got closer with over the past 2 years, shares how Andrew’s insightfulness applies to different aspects of his life.

“He’s very open and introspective with others but also with himself. He’s very reflective in his photography and journaling, but he’s also always willing to dive in deeper into conversations and talk about something meaningful,” Christopher said.

Whether it’s through photography or drawing or just jotting things down, Andrew is constantly recording his experiences and things to remember for the future through forms of art.

“I’ll often write about my day or something new that I learned. Sometimes I’ll also just carry around napkins with a bunch of writing or drawings on them. I’m just really into this compulsive documentation of my life,” he said.

Although Andrew has always been known, mainly by his close friends, for being very determined and passionate about what he loves to do, he still prioritizes just living life for what it is. Although Andrew had been playing competitive hockey for many years, he decided to sacrifice his dedication to it in order to make the most out of his limited time left in high school.

“I quit playing travel hockey last year in order to focus more on school. I don’t mean focus as in striving for super good grades but more like investing more emotionally and really being able to immerse myself in the environment to form better connections here before I leave,” Andrew said.

He lifted his head up and shifted his gaze from his hands that were clasped together on his lap up to the wall in Nichols filled with an assortment of artwork created by students.

With an assured tone, he continued, “That interest for my surroundings pervades through every element of my life and pretty much everything I do.”