As I sat in my first animation related college class at Cowley College and listened to the teacher go over the syllabus, I couldn’t believe I was actually here. Learning more about hobbies I have and how to turn them into a career. Achieving literacy in art and animation has been a long, hard work filled journey, but it’s totally worth it.
Growing up I was surrounded by extremely talented people. My Mom for instance, never went to any kind of art school, but I remember being amazed at the things she would draw. Then there were my brothers, both were fantastic at violin. Being around them all the time inspired me to find whatever I could be my best at. I wanted to be as talented as they were. Through middle school I tried an art class and a music class. I enjoyed the art class but didn’t think about it much after it was over. I did fairly well in the music class as well. I actually auditioned and was accepted into the south Kansas symphony when I was 13 but I just didn’t enjoy it like my brothers did and I stopped playing as consistently. Finally in my senior year of high school I needed one more creative credit so I took art again. That’s when I fell in love with art.
After high school, I knew I wanted to go to college eventually but I didn’t want to pay for it until I knew exactly what I wanted to go for. I remembered a bucket list I had made a while back and decided to take a break from school and chase those crazy dreams. I packed up anything that would fit in my car, quit my job, and started driving. When I left I knew I liked New Orleans, and I also knew I wanted to see beaches. Somehow I ended up in Daytona Beach, Florida with high ambitions to live as an artist.
When I first arrived I was terrified. I wasn’t sure how I could actually make it. I wasn’t sure where to start so, since my parents are pastors, I went to a church to meet locals. After the sermon, I met the pastor and we instantly clicked. She began introducing me to the congregation, and I met some of the most amazing people there. Through them I met my roommate and through my roommate I found my eventual employer. The people from my church also pointed me in the direction of a place called “The Hub” and that’s where things started taking off.
The Hub is basically an art gallery with a twist. It rents out a small studio for artists to work on, and sell their art to people that come to admire. The people in the The Hub taught me how to sell art on the streets in Orlando and Miami, and also told me when all the art shows were and how to get tables at them. Through The Hub I also met a character designer of Disney’s. He was sitting alone at a table, sketching. I walked over nervously, curiosity driving me to find out what he did for a living. When I asked, he told me who he was. There are steps of character designs. He created the mock up sketches of characters, then passed them on. He asked who I was and asked if I wanted to help him develop a few characters. Of course, I agreed. He taught me the process of how to draw them. He also showed me how to put together a portfolio that animation companies would be more likely to hire, and how to network correctly. I didn’t have a direction with my art until then. While working with him, I learned what I enjoyed most. That’s when I chose a career path.
After spending so much time learning from that character designer I decided I did need school for what I wanted to do, and was finally ready. I began looking at schools, first in Florida, because I loved it there, but I couldn’t find a school that offered what I needed for less than $40,000 a year. I wasn’t prepared to pay that much. Then, I remembered Cowley and its graphic design program. After a long debate with myself about leaving the sunshine state I finally decided to apply to Cowley, and that brings me to where I am now. Literate in art and working on becoming literate in computer graphics.
After community college, I plan to go for my bachelors, double majoring in animation and social media marketing. There are a few schools I’m looking into. I am attending a summer course at the London’s School of Liberal Arts. But after Cowley, I’m looking at Cal Arts in Los Angeles, New York’s School of Visual Arts in the city, and of course the London school I mentioned. I haven’t decided yet though. I also haven’t decided if I want to get a master’s somewhere or not. I’ll decide down the road. My ultimate goal is to either work for Pixar DreamWorks, or to work for the CIA. I’m not kidding. That’s the overall journey of how I became literate in art. As I said before, Achieving literacy in art and animation has been a long, hard work filled journey, but it’s been totally worth it.
�' �:<9�GbAs I sat in my first animation related college class at Cowley College and listened to the teacher go over the syllabus, I couldn’t believe I was actually here. Learning more about hobbies I have and how to turn them into a career. Achieving literacy in art and animation has been a long, hard work filled journey, but it’s totally worth it.
Growing up I was surrounded by extremely talented people. My Mom for instance, never went to any kind of art school, but I remember being amazed at the things she would draw. Then there were my brothers, both were fantastic at violin. Being around them all the time inspired me to find whatever I could be my best at. I wanted to be as talented as they were. Through middle school I tried an art class and a music class. I enjoyed the art class but didn’t think about it much after it was over. I did fairly well in the music class as well. I actually auditioned and was accepted into the south Kansas symphony when I was 13 but I just didn’t enjoy it like my brothers did and I stopped playing as consistently. Finally in my senior year of high school I needed one more creative credit so I took art again. That’s when I fell in love with art.
After high school, I knew I wanted to go to college eventually but I didn’t want to pay for it until I knew exactly what I wanted to go for. I remembered a bucket list I had made a while back and decided to take a break from school and chase those crazy dreams. I packed up anything that would fit in my car, quit my job, and started driving. When I left I knew I liked New Orleans, and I also knew I wanted to see beaches. Somehow I ended up in Daytona Beach, Florida with high ambitions to live as an artist.
When I first arrived I was terrified. I wasn’t sure how I could actually make it. I wasn’t sure where to start so, since my parents are pastors, I went to a church to meet locals. After the sermon, I met the pastor and we instantly clicked. She began introducing me to the congregation, and I met some of the most amazing people there. Through them I met my roommate and through my roommate I found my eventual employer. The people from my church also pointed me in the direction of a place called “The Hub” and that’s where things started taking off.
The Hub is basically an art gallery with a twist. It rents out a small studio for artists to work on, and sell their art to people that come to admire. The people in the The Hub taught me how to sell art on the streets in Orlando and Miami, and also told me when all the art shows were and how to get tables at them. Through The Hub I also met a character designer of Disney’s. He was sitting alone at a table, sketching. I walked over nervously, curiosity driving me to find out what he did for a living. When I asked, he told me who he was. There are steps of character designs. He created the mock up sketches of characters, then passed them on. He asked who I was and asked if I wanted to help him develop a few characters. Of course, I agreed. He taught me the process of how to draw them. He also showed me how to put together a portfolio that animation companies would be more likely to hire, and how to network correctly. I didn’t have a direction with my art until then. While working with him, I learned what I enjoyed most. That’s when I chose a career path.
After spending so much time learning from that character designer I decided I did need school for what I wanted to do, and was finally ready. I began looking at schools, first in Florida, because I loved it there, but I couldn’t find a school that offered what I needed for less than $40,000 a year. I wasn’t prepared to pay that much. Then, I remembered Cowley and its graphic design program. After a long debate with myself about leaving the sunshine state I finally decided to apply to Cowley, and that brings me to where I am now. Literate in art and working on becoming literate in computer graphics.
After community college, I plan to go for my bachelors, double majoring in animation and social media marketing. There are a few schools I’m looking into. I am attending a summer course at the London’s School of Liberal Arts. But after Cowley, I’m looking at Cal Arts in Los Angeles, New York’s School of Visual Arts in the city, and of course the London school I mentioned. I haven’t decided yet though. I also haven’t decided if I want to get a master’s somewhere or not. I’ll decide down the road. My ultimate goal is to either work for Pixar DreamWorks, or to work for the CIA. I’m not kidding. That’s the overall journey of how I became literate in art. As I said before, Achieving literacy in art and animation has been a long, hard work filled journey, but it’s been totally worth it.
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