![“I wasn't discouraged by some of the obstacles we faced. I learned a lot from the leadership. I found that different people need different ways of receiving feedback — you can't [just] tell them to do something and expect the best. [Some] people needed more incentive. A large part of my role was to figure out what worked for everyone and to figure out how to lead all these separate individuals as a team,” Suhana Bhandare (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SuhanaBhandare_JasmineHansra-1-1200x798.jpg)
![“This is actually from Randy Pausch Randy P. Brick: ‘Walls are there for a reason. You have to show how much you want to overcome them.’ You have to show how much you want something. That's what I've always been able to do with tennis, Link Crew and getting that internship [with Kushy Baby]. It’s important pushing through that — getting around that brick wall, climbing over it or clawing through it,” Yash Sachdeva (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/YashSachdeva_RamBatchu-copy-1200x1002.jpg)
![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
Nichols Hall, a building usually known as the home of science classrooms and lab experiments, transforms into a colorful gallery bursting with sculptures, paintings and photographs during the week of March 9. This year’s AP Studio Art Exhibition showcased a variety of student artworks, from hand-made dresses to black-and-white pictures, at the reception in Nichols Atrium on March 10.
Twenty-four students from AP Drawing, AP 3-D Art and AP 2-D Art displayed their work at this gallery. They began working on the pieces in October, with their efforts culminating in this exhibition six months later. During the reception, teachers and students milled through the space and admired the displays.
Senior Topaz Lee, an AP 3-D Art student, had his sculptural work presented in the exhibition. Some of his pieces were even recently chosen to be featured as part of New Museum Los Gatos’ ArtNow exhibition. He credits his growth in art to the plethora of opportunities the course provided him.
“We have so many resources available to us that the possibilities are pretty much endless, and I can explore whatever I want to explore, which is awesome,” Topaz said. “I’ve been seeing this exhibition for the past three years that I’ve been here, and I’ve always been super impressed by both the 3D and the 2D, and it’s a pretty cool experience to be able to contribute to it myself with my own work.”
Middle and high school Arts Chair Joshua Martinez organized the event, working alongside other teachers from the Art Department to set up wall and floor displays for the art. He shared his favorite part about the gallery, an annual tradition that began before he joined Harker 13 years ago.
“I love seeing the teachers from other disciplines come and look at the work,” Martinez said. “The whole community just turns out and checks it out, and we hear so many great comments afterwards.”
Sophomore Julia Lu, an AP 2-D Art student, chose the course so she could experiment with more mediums. Leaning into the chance to explore, she created five pieces in the AP Art Exhibition with oil, gouache, acrylic and colored pencil.
Julia’s portfolio explored the relationship between her current nostalgia and past childhood memories. Her piece “Afternoon with my besties,” is a watercolor and gouache piece depicting her younger self lounging on a couch surrounded by snacks and her favorite cartoon characters.
“I want them to think of whimsy and childhood memories,” Julia said. “I just want to express the nostalgia of childhood and what it would be like to interact with your memories.”
For Topaz, the exhibition is a chance to take inspiration from the artworks of his fellow classmates and to put their hard work on full display.
“My favorite part is definitely the people that I work with,” Topaz said. “ I get to see what everybody else is working on, what type of materials they’re using, and it’s been a really good experience to be able to talk to people about what they’re doing and to see their processes and maybe how that can influence my process. I’d say it’s really helped me grow as an artist.”
