With the stress of grades, sports, jobs, etc., high school students join electives like choir, band and art classes to have an outlet for self-expression. These examples of fine art all display one’s visual and auditory creative processes.
At a competitive school district like Pleasant Valley, most students find themselves in at least one of the fine arts programs throughout their time in high school. Sophomore Tanya Rastogi excels in a multitude of mediums, including musical performance, poetry, literature and painting.
Rastogi’s early interest in writing sparked her curiosity to expand into other visual arts. “When I was starting out I mostly wrote short stories typically accompanied by a drawing. The detail of these stories increased as I read more,” she explained.
The intertwining of writing and illustration in her stories led to Rastogi trying to enhance her drawing skills. “I started drawing because I began art classes, which I quickly came to enjoy. Even though I stopped attending for a while, I kept practicing on my own,” she said.
Rastogi primarily focuses on realism through dry mediums like pastel and graphite. She often creates her pieces and centers her work around important people in her life.
Some of the work she is most proud of includes “Grandfather”, which Rastogi claims to “hold the most depth” and “Foreign”, the latter of which she submitted to the 2022 Scholastic National Art and Writing Awards, where it received a gold key in the drawing and illustration category. With over 260,000 submissions of art and writing, the scholastic gold key is an extremely prestigious recognition for teens across the U.S. and Canada.
Other artworks of Rastogi’s have also been featured locally.
In March of 2022, her painting titled “Forlorn” was highlighted in the 45th Annual Quad Cities High School Art Invitational, displayed in the downtown Rock Island Art Gallery. The pastel piece depicting a brown cow won the Rock Island Art Guild Members’ Painting Award.
As her art journey developed, Rastogi began sharing her work via social media, specifically Instagram. “My Instagram account was originally personal when I made it in 6th grade but then I realized I was only posting my art so I made the account a designated art account, dedicated to sharing my art pieces. Sharing my art allows people to see pieces of my work that I’m proud of”.
Now, she sells her art prints online and creates commissions for other people.
In further efforts to share her art, Rastogi submits her art and writing pieces to various literary journals in hopes of being published. Although she is busy with many extracurriculars, she sees writing as a passion and enjoys world building in her dystopian works. In 2021, she self-published her first novel, New Earth, which includes her own cover art.
She completed this project over a period of 18 months during the COVID Pandemic.
Rastogi describes the process of writing her book as a project she slowly developed out of boredom from sitting at home. “This project continued into the school year (8th grade) and I used it in several writing assignments. What began as a rough outline turned into a 74,000 word novel, and while I wasn’t able to get it traditionally published, I’m happy that I dedicated so much time to something that I enjoy” she said.
Rastogi can also be attributed to an innumerable amount of short stories, exploring ambitious ideas and anything that she is inspired by. Sylvia, a solemn short story of hers, earned a silver key in the flash fiction category of the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards in March of this year.
Though excelling in literary and visual arts, Rastogi’s success extends toward auditory art as well. In school, she participates in band and choir, making it into wind symphony and chamber choir this year as a sophomore.
Her journey with music began in 6th grade when she joined choir and band, and her dedication to these programs has not faltered since. She now takes weekly voice and flute lessons, playing the flute and piccolo for the Quad Cities Youth Symphony Orchestra.
In 2021, Rastogi, as a freshman, was selected for the Iowa All State Band on flute. Out of all those selected, she earned 10th chair for the performance. This year, she auditioned for choir, making the cut once again.
Jocelyn Bock, one of Rastogi’s peers, has observed her dedication and genuine passion for what she does. “Tanya is very talented whether it be singing or playing the flute. She puts so much time and effort into everything she does because she truly enjoys the art” Bock recognized.
Looking towards the future, Rastogi wants to make more time for her work while finding the right balance between school. “Right now, schoolwork is occupying most of my time, but I’d like to start a new artwork when I’m not so busy”. Rastogi also has work set aside right now for an upcoming gallery display in Rock Island consisting of at least ten pastels. She hopes to continue with her love of art, using it as a creative outlet going forward into college.
