Q: When did you realize art was going to be your main outlet?
A: “I want to say, I think I just knew my whole life. Not on purpose — it was something that just sort of happened. I feel like every artist starts out as that kid in class who can just draw really well, or is described as really artistic by their teachers and their friends, and they are like, ‘Oh that is so cool, can you draw me that?’ I think it just started from a really young age where it’s like ‘Oh, well if I am good at this thing, and I like this thing then maybe I should keep doing it.’ Ever since I was little, I wanted to be an artist, and I wanted to go to college for art. Specifically, I wanted to get my master’s degree in art.”
Q: What would you say your art has done for you personally?
A: “My art has really just created me as a person. I honestly don’t think I would be who I am if I wasn’t in art. I would say that it gets me excited in the morning. It’s what I want to do everyday. It’s just really what makes me happy and I think it keeps me going. It gives me an outlet for my ideas and my feelings. It helps me say the things I need to say.”
Q: What is your favorite piece of art and how has it impacted you?
A: “It’s hard to choose from something I’ve created because I feel like each piece is a different experience, so it’s hard to just pick one. I would say that ‘Toothbrushes’ has definitely triggered some really big ideas. So I think that is the one that I am most excited about, because it’s a direction with my art that I’ve never gone before. So after I made it, I was like ‘Oh my gosh’ there is a whole other world that I haven’t really gotten into yet. And I think it’s funny because when we are in school we take classes and really just learn how to use tools and do assignments. And now, being out and being able to use those tools, I can be as free as I want.”
Q: What has been your proudest moment as an artist?
A: “My proudest moment I would say was winning the Undergraduate Art Show. I had the honor of winning it twice in the same year and so I was really excited because the first time I won, I had never won anything before. I remember thinking to myself walking into that gallery, ‘Oh my god, all these people are so good.’ It was the first year that I transferred to the U of I. I was like ‘Gosh’ all of these sculptures are so good and so beautiful. Honestly, I almost didn’t enter but two of my friends forced me to enter the first show because I was saying ‘No, this isn’t good enough.’ I did it, and I went to the award ceremony and had gotten first place. My mouth literally dropped. One of my professors was laughing at my reaction, I couldn’t believe I had gotten it. I didn’t think I stood a chance. I won it and then entered a second time and was still so scared. Some people don’t want to admit that they just want to win, they say ‘I did my best’ but secretly deep down — I did want to win. It’s a good feeling. I think it’s just getting that little piece of knowing that you are doing okay. Granted each judge is going to have their different opinion and you are not going to win every time. But just getting that recognition makes you feel like you are in a good place. You realize you are supposed to be here, you are doing the right thing, and just keep going.”
Q: Do you feel that art can make social change?
A: “I think it can, and I think that it needs to. I’m not very political if I’m being honest I think that it is necessary for art to bring about change — not just in politics, but in people’s lives as a whole. One, to being them together and two, to help them become who they really are. Maybe as creative people who are suppressed and unable to express themselves because as an artist a lot of people tell you ‘Oh that is not a real job’ or ‘You shouldn’t do that’ and I think that change should be valid. People should be allowed to pursue what they love and what they are passionate about. I am not the kind of artist who would make a political statement but I think there is a place for it. It needs to be there because art influences media
Story by Nicole Etchemendy
Photos by Nicole Etchemendy
Design by Alexis Cortez
Video by Bailey O’Bryant