Aventura student honors the passing of her baby brother with award-winning photo project

For 16-year-old Sheina-Ruth Skuy-Marcan, receiving an Honorable Mention for photography from the National YoungArts Foundation is only part of her story.

She started taking photographs at the beginning of 2020 and it has helped her to finally grieve.

“My brother, Gilad, died,” Sheina-Ruth said. “I was 6 when he passed. Gilad was not yet 1.” Her baby brother was born with five holes in his heart and a narrowing of his aorta.

“My parents spent months with him in and out of the hospital. Despite all the efforts, a post-operative infection ultimately led to his demise. His aorta burst, which was mirrored by the shattering of my heart.”

Sheina-Ruth lives in Aventura and is in 10th grade at David Posnack Jewish Day School in Davie.

“The purpose of the YoungArts, which is actually held every year in Miami, is to share a meaningful story, so I decided to do a project on my brother, Gilad.

“It was more for the sake of a tribute to him and remembering him in a positive light since I had never done a project on him before. It was difficult to take on since I had never written about him and my feelings about his passing away before,” she said.

The photographs, titled “Born Breathe Broken Heart Sleep Grieve,” illustrate Gilad’s life, beginning with the day he was born. At first, Sheina-Ruth said she was confused on how he could “be here one second and gone the next.”

“As time moved on, my biggest fear was that my memories of Gilad might fade. There were times when I refused to think about him because it would make me miss him more, and it hurt. Fast forward to now. It is my study of photography that allows me to revisit my past from a new perspective.”

Finding a box of Gilad’s belongings that her parents had saved helped her start.

“As I was holding these items, I realized I was not only holding on to Gilad’s belongings but holding onto his memory as well.”

Sheina-Ruth photographed the five items that stirred up the most emotions, both sad and happy. They are Gilad’s birth certificate, oxygen mask, X-ray, pajamas and his death certificate.

“As I stared at his belongings, I felt remorseful for not thinking of him sooner and once again felt fearful that my memories of Gilad were fading as shown in the abstracted images. Looking at Gilad’s X-ray scans, the tears came flooding down at the sight of his tiny body. However, at the sight of his colorful pajamas, I could not have felt more joyful. This made me realize that it was not possible for me to forget him.

“By taking on this project, I grew as an artist and as a person. I was able to use my camera to always keep me connected to my brother,” she said.

YoungArts supports many early-career artists and will premiere a short animation film called “Together” at 8 p.m., Jan. 25.

“During these uncertain times, YoungArts is raising critical funds for the organization through virtual campaign efforts to continue its support of artists, while also celebrating art and its power to bring people together,” said Executive Director Jewel Malone.

The film is illustrated by YoungArts alumni and guest artists, and each of the more than 1,500 unique frames will be available for $175 to help young creative people across the country. Details and all the 2021 winners are at www.youngarts.org.

Palmetto students honored by top colleges

Though the celebration was held virtually, the honor of being a scholarship winner was huge just the same.

For Harry Nerenberg, Miami Palmetto Senior High college counselor, the awards are exceptionally sweet. He has been guiding young people for 38 years.

“Miami Palmetto had four Posse scholars and one QuestBridge winner. Alexis Lopez, Breanna Suarez, and Kayla Klurman will be attending Davidson College while Jacob Grindstaff will be attending Syracuse. Posse of Miami makes it possible to pay for all tuition to these prestigious programs,” Nerenberg said.

“Priscilla Bermudez is a QuestBridge winner who will be attending the University of Chicago with a full paid scholarship for tuition, room and board. We are so proud of these winners and of all the kids who qualified and competed throughout Miami and the country.”

The QuestBridge award was the first for a Palmetto student in 10 years.

There have been many Posse Foundation winners from Palmetto over the years, “and we had three for three for Davidson for the second time,” he said.

Common App, Reach Higher, and Collegewise recently gave national recognition to Palmetto for its college advisement program.

New World School presents virtual concert

Miami’s New World School of the Arts will premiere its first online ensemble concert at 7 p.m. Jan. 28 in a livestream performance on YouTube.

The concert, “Resilience: A Musical Response From Our Home to Yours,” will showcase over 200 musicians — 180 instrumental and voice students — along with 11 guest artists, three alumni, and more than 10 faculty members and ensemble directors.

“This was an unprecedented project during unprecedented times, which made it all the more challenging, but it inspired all of us with the light of hope to guide our way forward,” said Dr. Daniel Andai, dean of music at NWSA.

View at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChDOMrN5mkqlJ2eU-lfYcKQ Admission is free, but a $15 donation can support the NWSA music program. Details and the donation link will be provided during the concert. More at https://nwsa.mdc.edu/

If you have news for this column, write to ChristinaMMayo@gmail.com

This story was originally published January 21, 2021 at 7:00 AM.