Please welcome our new art teacher, Ms. L’Heureux, to our Xavier community! Ms. L’Heureux currently lives in Durham, CT, and is now in her sixth-year of teaching. Ms. L’Heureux is excited to return to high school, as she was previously teaching elementary.  Ms. L’Heureux attended the University of Hartford for her undergraduate education and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in illustration. Ms. L’Heureux has one dog and two cats, and enjoys taking them for walks in her free time.

What brought you to Xavier?

Ms. L’Heureux said she was brought to Xavier almost immediately by how our community immediately struck her as special. Additionally, Ms. L’Heureux enjoys teaching more complicated and advancing art techniques and concepts at the high school level. Plus, it helps that Xavier is a short ten-minute drive!

What type of art do you enjoy?

Ms. L’Heureux is currently pursuing her master’s in illustration, and her thesis is on fantasy book covers. She is inspired by artists like Drew Struzan, who created the covers for the Indiana Jones series. She is also inspired by the late Bernie Wrightson, who drew the covers for the iconic Frankenstein books. Ms. L’Heureux enjoys portraiture, drawing faces, and drawing animals. She also said she prefers stylized realism as opposed to photo realism, simply adding light emotion through some abstraction.

What drew you to art?

Though she wasn’t born into an artistic family, Ms. L’Heureux had always held a propensity for the arts. She prefers art over the STEM subjects like math and science. Ms. L’Heureux believes that art is not simply art, but rather about the person who created the piece, and the story behind it. Ms. L’Heureux says that this is why studying art is important, especially in the age of art created by generative AI. Ms. L’Heureux believes one of the most incredible things about art, specifically about teaching art, is how the incredible history and stories behind art get passed down from generation to generation, guiding the future generations.

Art at Xavier

Ms. L’Heureux wants to encourage all Xavier students to take an art class! Xavier offers many art classes such as drawing, illustration, and painting. In the future, Xavier hopes to offer additional classes such as digital art. Ms. L’Heureux says that Xavier students should not be scared to take an art class, it is a great way to relax, and you may discover a new passion or talent you never knew you had!