Arts Student of the Week: Autumn Rutherford

Autumn Rutherford has been taking ceramics courses since her freshman year at Niwot High School. Now enrolled in Advanced Ceramics, she first started learning ceramics in middle school and thoroughly enjoyed it, so when she got to high school she continued the classes.

"Autumn is a very dedicated ceramics student," said her teacher, Beth Collier, who selected Rutherford as Arts Student of the Week. Rutherford has also taken multiple drawing and painting classes and she particularly enjoys drawing, especially with graphite and pen and ink. Her ceramic pieces have been displayed at the district art shows.

"She is always open to another clay challenge," Collier said. "She does an excellent job glazing her projects, bringing a level of professionalism and finish to her work that I really appreciate."

Rutherford, a junior at NHS, describes her interest in glazing as "exciting, new, and fun." Glazing is one of her favorite parts of ceramics, because it is always a surprise. "You never know exactly how a piece will turn out," she said. "Experimenting and testing are both exciting and unpredictable." She enjoys finding new techniques to test, most of which come from the internet, and discovering new favorites.

She feels that she is constantly learning new techniques and improving with each class. "It's very therapeutic and satisfying to make things, especially on the pottery wheel," she said.

Rutherford's parents are also very artistic and they enjoy seeing the new things she creates. Her art teachers, Beth Collier and Crystal Hinds, have both had tremendous influence on her work as well. Rutherford appreciates the support and encouragement that they have all provided.

She also appreciates having access to a variety of art classes. "I love that you're not limited to just one type of art," Rutherford said, "and that you can really be creative and do multiple things. I obviously really enjoy the ceramics classes, but I also really enjoyed my drawing and painting classes. In ceramics especially, I feel like I've already learned so much and gotten so much better in the few classes I've taken. Going on the pottery wheel or just hand building is definitely my release for the week and my favorite class by far."

Accidents are sometimes part of the process. "One really memorable moment for me is when I was first learning new techniques on the pottery wheel and I was making a casserole dish," Rutherford confessed. "I spent multiple days just trying to figure it out, then when I finally got the perfect dish, I dropped it and broke it. The next day I made an even better one on my first try and was so happy with it."

Softball is Rutherford's other main interest. "I've been playing it since I was four and loved it ever since," she said. She is the starting shortstop for the NHS softball team, and is currently playing competitively for a team called the Batbusters. She also serves as manager for the NHS baseball team.

She has committed to play softball for CSU and plans to play all four years while getting her college diploma. Although she is not sure what her major will be, she easily admits that she is very excited for the future.

Overall, Rutherford says that her experience at NHS has been good. She enjoys the teachers and the environment at the school. "It has been a pleasure to have Autumn in class over the last two years!" Collier said.