My name is Amuri Morris and I’m studying studio art and business at Virginia Commonwealth University. My interest in art first developed when I was experiencing a brief period of homelessness as a child. Art became a form of escapism for me. The paintbrush in my hand allowed the boundary between reality and the imaginary to fade away. My education will help me achieve my goal of being a studio artist and art teacher. My passion for art is the reason I want to enter my field as an art teacher and studio artist. The deprioritization of creativity in the classroom in favor of rehashed lesson plans stunts the development of a visionary lens and establishes limits for students, thus the line between reality and the imaginary becomes clearly defined. Helen Keller once said, “The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision.” Here “sight” is identical to the grace of an education and “visions” are the creative thoughts that such an education should stir. Therefore, my drive to enter my field is to ensure future generations are presented with an appropriate level of artistic nurturing to maximize their potential. From my majors I want to learn how to effectively translate my artistic ideas and learn how to foster childrens' artistic capacity. Another one of my goals is to promote community engagement in the arts and better the community with my talent. My college education is equipping me to do this by helping me develop leadership skills to take charge in my field of interest. This is why I decided to volunteer as an art studio assistant at the Children’s Museum of Richmond. The volunteer work I do here is preparing me for my ongoing mission to enter my field to inspire generations through art. At the Children's Museum, the combination of helping children create then display their art is something that will greatly further their social-emotional development. By elevating their art I hope to build their confidence and help them gain a sense of pride in what they can create. As a studio artist I aim to distribute my work and the messages I believe in. My work as an artist focuses on the manifestation of identity, particularly black identity. This identity always forms to show the consistently powerful presence of the black figure. I'm rewriting the narrative that western visual media has historically established by elevating black figures to the role of the protagonist. There is a definite negative social identity that is imposed upon black youth when the media negates the idea of the "black hero". My pieces break free from this imposed identity and explore new ranges. It's important to see the black protagonist, the black leader, the black achiever. My academic goals include the continuation of learning about and comparing and contrasting contemporary works with their historical antecedents, to inform my work. Becoming knowledgable about the milestones that shaped the art world’s history goes hand-in-hand with the technical ability I am also learning in my studies. My academic goals also include utilizing my school’s resources to further network and integrate myself in the art community. Part of this integration includes obtaining my teaching license so I can become an art teacher for today’s youth. Overall, I want to succeed in all my courses and complete my college education to become as knowledgeable as possible to succeed in the art world and as a community leader.

My name is Amuri Morris and I’m studying studio art and at Virginia Commonwealth University. My interest in art first developed when I was experiencing a brief period of homelessness as a child. Art became a form of escapism for me. The paintbrush in my hand allowed the boundary between reality and the imaginary to fade away. I began to see myself outside my circumstances and art became my vehicle for my individual journey of exploration and discovery. As I devoted myself to my art, my world seemed to improve. My education will help me achieve my goal of being an art teacher. My passion for art is the reason I want to enter my field as an art teacher and studio artist. The deprioritization of creativity in the classroom in favor of rehashed lesson plans stunts the development of a visionary lens and establishes limits for students, thus the line between reality and the imaginary becomes clearly defined. Helen Keller once said, “The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision.” Here “sight” is identical to the grace of an education and “visions” are the creative thoughts that such an education should stir. Therefore, my drive to enter my field is to ensure future generations are presented with an appropriate level of artistic nurturing to maximize their potential. From my majors I want to learn how to effectively translate my artistic ideas and learn how to foster childrens' artistic capacity. One of my goals is to promote community engagement in the arts and better the community with my talent. My college education is equipping me to do this by helping me develop leadership skills to take charge in my field of interest. This is why I decided to volunteer as an art studio assistant at the Children’s Museum of Richmond. The volunteer work I do here is preparing me on my ongoing mission to enter my field to inspire generations through the art. At the Children's Museum, the combination of helping children create then display their art is something that will greatly further their social-emotional development. By elevating their art I hope to build their confidence and help them gain a sense of pride in what they can create.

My everything is the art I create. As a studio artist, I aim to distribute my work because I believe the messages in my work are powerful. My work focuses on the manifestation of identity, particularly black identity. This identity always forms to show the consistently powerful presence of the black figure. In my work I'm rewriting the narrative that western visual media has historically established by elevating black figures to the role of the protagonist. There is a definite negative social identity that is imposed upon black youth when the media negates the idea of the "black hero". My pieces break free from this imposed identity and explore new ranges. It's important to see the black protagonist, the black leader, the black achiever. This necessity also extends to the fantasy realm. Many of my pieces are redefined fairy-tale protagonists because as a child the lack of representation in media was very apparent.

My name is Amuri Morris and I’m studying painting and printmaking at Virginia Commonwealth University. A major in painting in printmaking is essential to me because it would also equip me with the intellectual and critical tools necessary to succeed in the art world. The development of art over the centuries, including the social and political conditions behind the work and lives of some of the most important artists are a major part of the courses I will take. This will help expand my understanding of what it means to be an artist today. My training at VCU will also allow me to grow as an artist because I will be forced to break free from my artistic comfort zones. One of my goals is to promote community engagement in the arts and better the community with my talent. My college education is equipping me to do this by helping me develop leadership skills to take charge in my field of interest. This is why I decided to volunteer as an art studio assistant at the Children’s Museum of Richmond. The volunteer work I do here is preparing me on my ongoing mission to enter my field to inspire generations through the arts. At the Children's Museum, the combination of helping children create then display their art is something that will greatly further their social-emotional development. By elevating their art I hope to build their confidence and help them gain a sense of pride in what they can create. Along with developing my artistic skills, my school is essential because it is helping me develop my artistic ideas. As a studio artist, I aim to distribute my work and the messages I believe in. My work as an artist focuses on the manifestation of identity, particularly black identity. This identity always forms to show the consistently powerful presence of the black figure. I'm rewriting the narrative that western visual media has historically established by elevating black figures to the role of the protagonist. There is a definite negative social identity that is imposed upon black youth when the media negates the idea of the "black hero". My pieces break free from this imposed identity and explore new ranges. It's important to see the black protagonist, the black leader, the black achiever. My academic goals include the continuation of learning about and comparing and contrasting contemporary works with their historical antecedents, to inform my work. Becoming knowledgable about the milestones that shaped the art world’s history goes hand-in-hand with the technical ability I am also learning in my studies. My academic goals also include utilizing my school’s resources to further network and integrate myself in the art community. Part of this integration includes obtaining my teaching license so I can become an art teacher for today’s youth. Overall, I want to succeed in all my courses and complete my college education to become as knowledgeable as possible to succeed in the art world and as a community leader.

Helen Keller once said, “The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision.” To me “sight” is identical to the grace of an education and “visions” are the creative thoughts that such an education should stir. My education will play the role of helping me achieve my goal of being a studio artist and art teacher. My drive to become an art teacher is to ensure future generations are presented with an appropriate level of artistic nurturing to maximize their potential. As a studio artist, I will change the world because I believe the messages in my work are powerful. My work focuses on the manifestation of identity, particularly black identity. This identity always forms to show the consistently powerful presence of the black figure. In my work I'm rewriting the narrative that western visual media has historically established by elevating black figures to the role of the protagonist. From my majors I want to learn how to effectively translate my artistic ideas and learn how to foster childrens' artistic capacity. My academic goals include the continuation of learning about and comparing and contrasting contemporary works with their historical antecedents, to inform my work. Becoming knowledgable about the milestones that shaped the art world’s history goes hand-in-hand with the technical ability I am also learning in my studies. My academic goals also include utilizing my school’s resources to further network and integrate myself in the art community. Part of this integration includes obtaining my teaching license so I can become an art teacher for today’s youth. Overall, I want to succeed in all my courses and complete my college education to become as knowledgeable as possible to succeed in the art world and as a community leader.

My name is name is Amuri Morris and I’m studying studio art at Virginia Commonwealth University. My interest in art first developed when I was experiencing a brief period of homelessness as a child. Art became a form of escapism for me. The paintbrush in my hand allowed the boundary between reality and the imaginary to fade away. I began to see myself outside my circumstances and art became my vehicle for my individual journey of exploration and discovery. As I devoted myself to my art and my art class, my world seemed to improve. My education will help me achieve my goal of being a studio artist and art teacher. I’m committed to art because it's my vehicle for my journey of exploration. The paintbrush in my hand allows the boundary between the imaginary and reality to fade away. Artistic creativity is something that can’t be stagnant, it looks beyond what’s there and sees what could be. Within every piece, I create there is a certain moment of cognitive realization. At this moment I step back from my piece and I acknowledge that I’ve crafted my reality on this page from nothing. This surreal feeling of being a creator is why I want to be an artist. I see it as simultaneously the ultimate form of escapism and the strongest tool I have to craft my own reality. My passion for art is the reason I want to enter my field as an art teacher and studio artist. The deprioritization of creativity in the classroom in favor of rehashed lesson plans stunts the development of a visionary lens and establishes limits for students, thus the line between reality and the imaginary becomes clearly defined. Helen Keller once said, “The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision.” Here “sight” is identical to the grace of an education and “visions” are the creative thoughts that such an education should stir. Therefore, my drive to enter my field is to ensure future generations are presented with an appropriate level of artistic nurturing to maximize their potential. From my majors I want to learn how to effectively translate my artistic ideas and learn how to foster childrens' artistic capacity. Another one of my goals is to promote community engagement in the arts and better the community with my talent. My college education is equipping me to do this by helping me develop leadership skills to take charge in my field of interest. This is why I decided to volunteer as an art studio assistant at the Children’s Museum of Richmond. Many of the volunteers here are older adults so it shines a positive light on the level of community engagement VCU students have. It also shows how students are actively seeking to participate in their desired field outside of the classroom. The volunteer work I do here is preparing me on my ongoing mission to enter my field to inspire generations through the art. At the Children's Museum, the combination of helping children create then display their art is something that will greatly further their social-emotional development. By elevating their art I hope to build their confidence and help them gain a sense of pride in what they can create. My academic goals include the continuation of learning about and comparing and contrasting contemporary works with their historical antecedents, to inform my work. Becoming knowledgable about the milestones that shaped the art world’s history goes hand-in-hand with the technical ability I am also learning in my studies. My academic goals also include utilizing my school’s resources to further network and integrate myself in the art community. Part of this integration includes obtaining my teaching license so I can become an art teacher for today’s youth. Overall, I want to succeed in all my courses and complete my college education to become as knowledgeable as possible to succeed in the art world and as a community leader.