Nightmare on Main Street - Artist Statements

Aug 20, 2026

Curated for “Nightmare on Main Street,” this booklet gathers artist statements exploring fear as both a protective emotion and a potentially thrilling or harmful experience. It frames fear through the Halloween haunted-house tradition and asks participating artists to create works depicting fear’s effects on their lives in negative or positive ways. Included artist biographies and selected artwork descriptions connect personal memory, darkness and light, and themes such as monsters, masks, death, and unsettling atmospheres.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLiterature

FormatPDF

Pages60

Reading Time1 h 32 min

AccessFree to download

Artist Statements

Fear as Emotion

Creative Prompt

Artist Biographies and Works

Nightmare on Main Street October 20th-November 12th, 2023 Artist Statements With Additional Support from: Main St. Benefactor Members Beth and Charles Levinthal Carolyn Sampson in memory of Cindy Kiebitz Bette and Paul Schneiderman Sustaining Benefactor: Po Zhang Holly Hunt | Nightmare on Main St Juror Artist Statement for HAC Nightmare on Main Street Fear is one of the seven universal emotions and can stem from real threats or imagined dangers. Many consider fear to be a “negative” emotion, but fear can actually serve an important role in keeping us safe. Halloween is commonly known for pumpkins, costumes, witches, trick-or-treating, and haunted houses. In the 21st century, simulated Halloween haunted houses are used to frighten willing participants by incorporating actors dressed in costume, fearsome sets and characters, darkness, and sound and fog machines. While some might enjoy the journey through these types of haunted houses, others enjoy entering a location that is rumored to be haunted and exploring in the darkness not knowing what lurks around the corner. Fear can be either an exhilarating and unexplainable thrill ora harmful and harrowing experience. Using the medium of your choice, create an art piece to depict how fear has affected your life in either a negative or positive way. Artist Biography Holly Hunt is a New York based photographer whose work consists primarily of self-portraits where she uses darkness and light in unconventional attire and surroundings to represent her personal journey. Her images are inspired by her childhood or forgotten memories that have been triggered through her exploration and discovery. Holly’s first photograph was captured with a Polaroid and her love for photography started on film. Eventually, she moved to digital format, self-improving and perfecting her craft through research, trial and error, and practice. In 2016, she started her photography business focusing on capturing beauty in abandoned places. Her images of abandonment are widely known and have been awarded by Heckscher Museum of Art and Gallery North. Holly’s artwork has been exhibited in over twenty-five galleries. She is a photography instructor and author. In 2020, she self-published her book,“Exploring Home”. Alyana Abreu Big Snack Watercolor, 14” x 11” North Babylon High School NFS Ava Beck In The Dark Handrawn and Digital, 750 px x 933 px Harborfields High School NFS Artist Statement: I was playing a horror game when inspiration struck to draw a creepy monster. I drew the drawing on paper before taking it to a digital drawing app and editing it there where I made the lines cleaner, made the eyes brighter, and added a better background. This was made to be scary. Amelia Bhairo Resting Man Ink, 17. 5” x 12. 5” West Hempstead Secondary NFS Artist Statement: This piece was made to be overbearing and unsettling. The contrast between the strictly black and white color pallet gives texture. The person in the drawing is shown to be lifeless, while also full of little details that bring the drawing itself to life. The unconformity comes to bring my art together. Eden Bonamassa A Moon Peering Through Horizon Watercolor, 18” x 24” x 1. 5”North Babylon High School NFS Artist Statement: Fear turns you into the very thing you were afraid of. It’s true for both figures in the piece in very different ways. Fear can corrupt your actions and compromise your worth out of desperation to escape dread. It can also blind your perception of reality and the way you view the world hence the girls eyes. Yuxin Cai Under Masks Mixed Media, 12” x 12”Syosset High School $100 Artist Statement: Us, under masks… I really think this is us currently. In today’s society, to survive, everyone needs to wear different masks in different occasions. In this harsh reality, everyone needs to wear masks in order to fit into this society. I believe that everyone is a kind child, but

FAQs

What theme does the booklet focus on?

The booklet centers on fear, examining how it can protect people or create unsettling, frightening experiences.

What creative task did participating artists complete?

Artists created an art piece using their chosen medium to depict how fear has affected their life in either a negative or positive way.

How does the booklet connect fear to Halloween?

It links fear to Halloween haunted houses in the 21st century, describing staged fright through costumes, sets, darkness, and sound or fog, while noting that some people find it thrilling and others find it harmful.

Aug 20, 2026

Upload by Jordan Avery