A local high school student is now in the same discussion as Andy Warhol after winning a competition entered by more than 100,000 students across the state.
SCRANTON, Pa. — Jacob Layland spends a lot of time inside the art studio at Scranton Preparatory School.
But it’s the work he’s done outside of the classroom that’s gotten him national recognition.
“I actually did not like the picture at all. My first, I kind of had to edit this quite a bit, my first edit. Saw it, thought it was fine, posted it on Instagram, didn’t think like much of it, but my instructors at the time, they really, they did love it, and they kind of saw the potential in it,” said Jacob Layland, Scranton Prep senior.
Titled ‘jewelry store,’ this photo of a jeweler working behind a store window was captured by Jacob while on a school trip to New York City.
It wasn’t his favorite piece, but some persuasion saw him enter it into the Scholastic Art Awards.
One of 335,000 photo submissions, he was surprised to find out he got to regionals, and stunned when he found out he won the national competition.
“I really have worked so hard at this, at getting to a point in photography that I’m happy with,” said Layland.
“So this is a once-in-a-generation win for Northeastern Pennsylvania. Our school is very proud of Jacob. It’s the same award that Andy Warhol earned when he was in high school in Pittsburgh, and a lot of us know that his career went international,” said Jeff Kuratnick, Scranton Prep Visual Arts Teacher.
Visual Arts teacher Jeff Kuratnick says Jacob’s win will see his work exhibited this summer at Carnegie Hall in New York City. Giving the world an opportunity to see what’s just a small part of his photography portfolio. “It’s something to kind of be a jump-off point for somebody to launch their career on,” he said.
And for Jacob, this is just the start of a dream he’s still chasing. “To receive recognition like that just means the world doing something I love. Like this is my whole life, my whole being. This is what I’m meant to do.”