RIT’s Bevier Gallery Hosts Middle and High School Exhibition Feb. 3-29

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Cindy Truong performs as her sister, Linh—a former School of the Arts student who directed and filmed Missing You in dedication to her father.

Linh Truong created the video Missing You as a tribute to her father who died in 2002. It took nine years before the young artist, a student at Rochester’s School of the Arts, could express her feelings about her loss.

“The footage, words, music, sound effects spoke my thoughts better than I ever could,” says Truong, who completed the film last spring at School of the Arts and is now a freshman at The State University of New York College at Buffalo.

“This is my way of keeping him in my life, and not to tell the story of hurt, but how time and strength would finally bring release and healing. The process of creating this short film, as I filmed each clip and each word, watched each snowfall and starry night, made me feel like there was a window slowly opening up inside of me and shining light into me.”

Truong’s visual arts teacher at School of the Arts, Elisa Bond, submitted her piece for the Rochester-Finger Lakes Middle and High School Community Exhibit, which will be held at Rochester Institute of Technology’s Bevier Gallery. The annual student artistic showcase opens with a reception from 5 to 7 p.m. Feb. 3 and runs through Feb. 29.

“Linh’s family came from Vietnam to America to start a new life,” explains Bond, who taught Linh since she was in the seventh grade. “Her dad became ill and died, leaving the family in a very poor economic state. The piece is not about the struggle to come here, or about being poor but about the impact his life had on her and how he is always with her and guiding her life.

“The film is a wonderful example of the therapeutic nature of art, how it has the ability to heal, make sense out of painful events and give us hope.”

The Rochester Finger Lakes Regional Exhibition features works from 40 area schools—from Webster Schroeder to Rush-Henrietta to Wayland-Cohocton.

“We have a wide variety of work from just about every medium possible,” says Debbie Kingsbury, assistant dean in RIT’s College of Imaging Arts and Sciences, which is hosting the event. “The young artists in the show have amazing potential, often creating works that have meaning and a connection to their lives.”

Bevier Gallery is handicapped-accessible and is located in the James E. Booth Building on RIT’s Henrietta campus. Regular gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday; 7 to 9 p.m. Monday to Thursday; 1 to 4:30 p.m. Saturday; and 2 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday. All exhibits are free and visitor parking is available in E Lot and F Lot. For more information, call the Bevier Gallery at 585-475-2646.