Somers Artist Has a Criss-Cross of Talent

SOMERS, N.Y. - A look at Gigi Vincentz’s work says one thing loud and clear. The young artist really knows what she’s doing, and about to enter high school, her start ties to a singular moment.

“The second I picked up a pencil,” said the Somers student.

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From there, she moved onto watercolors and has mostly settled on acrylics and graphite pencils. “I’ve always liked to create stuff,” said Vincentz.

So the strokes are set in motion by her interests. Music among them, she feels pretty good about her recent creation of Paul McCartney. “I love the Beatles,” she said.

Not actually getting the icon to sit, she uses photographs as her guide and does the same even when the subject is really close to home. Sadie, her dog, is a favorite subject, and the canine doesn’t mind being a stand in of sorts. “She has really curly hair and curly hair is very hard to do with all the different shades and details,” said Vincentz. “So sometimes I do her for practice.”

Either way, she goes back to the beginning for whatever her latest inspiration is. “I do a (pencil) sketch on a canvas and then add in more details,” Vincentz said.

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A strategy that has actually put her work at the right angle (or angles). “It was cool to see my stuff in frames,” the freshman said of her work displayed at Coldwell Banker in Somers.

A school exhibit, she was pretty proud and she wasn’t alone.

“When I make my parents proud, I feel very confident,” Vincentz explained.

More so probably with her mom because she is an artist herself. On the other hand, the daughter is selective about getting such an up close and personal opinion.  “If I ask her to be a critic, she is a critic, but most of the time, she’s just a mom,” joked Vincentz.

The artist doesn’t shy away from the chance to improve, though. “Criticism is important,” she said. “If I mess up, tell me I messed up.”

That sets her up going forward. “Then I can usually take it and apply to more pieces, and if it’s good advice, it will stick with me,” Vincentz said.

Conversely in the event that the criticism doesn’t measure up or doesn’t provide the opportunity for improvement, the creative is impervious. “As long as I like it,” Vincentz assured. “That’s all that matters.”

Her right brain in agreement, she probably doesn’t appreciate veering left when the digits start to add up in class.  “I’m pretty good in math,” she revealed. “I want to put that to use.”

And her possible career interest has a crossover.  “Math and art can relate a lot in architecture, because a lot of the design ideas have to be measured and precise,” she said.

So where does the criss-cross leave her passion for art in the future?

“It will probably be a hobby for me,” Vincentz said.

The nonprofit nature of her choice doesn’t mean any less value, though. “When I talk and then I act, that’s how I am on the outside. But my inner mind is expressed through art,” she concluded.

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