If there’s anything I’ve learned from being a mixed-media artist, it’s that you can make art with anything. Wood, moss, beads, wire, leather, old bags, buttons, uno cards, and food wrappers are only a few of the extensive list of materials I’ve worked with over the years. My passion for art lies in the ability to turn these items into masterpieces, and my passion for graphic design lies in the ability to turn physical artwork into something even bigger.   One of the main places I executed this was in my 2024 AP Art portfolio. My inquiry question was “How do materialistic values affect people?”, and many of my pieces started as traditional art. I experimented with different fabrics and materials, but my art still felt off. Since I was used to mainly creating digital pieces, I tried going back to making graphic designs to connect with the promotion of materialistic values on social media. The results came out better than I had ever imagined. The ability to undo mistakes with the click of a button, the endless number of brushes at my fingertips, and the ability to go over my previously traditional pieces with intricate, high-quality designs had taken my portfolio from zero to one hundred.   With graphic design elements and principles, I was able to communicate how materialism affects society on a much more meaningful scale. I could use textures and colors unique to only digital brushes to make my message appeal to our modern world, and whether printed or posted to social media, I could instantly connect with a broader audience thanks to graphic design. My passion for graphic design pushed me to continue making pieces regarding societal issues. It challenged me to ask myself, “How can I use the array of digital tools I have at my fingertips to create meaningful art?” With every piece I created, I was driven to research more and more on how elements of design can impact viewers of artwork. I learned how to make people sad through colors and lines and happy through patterns and shapes. Most of all, I learned how to use composition skills to grab people’s attention. Graphic design empowered me with the ability to make a change, even if I wasn’t brave enough to be a politician or to protest.   In a society where technology rules everything, bringing awareness to worldwide issues through digital media is a necessary skill. Studying graphic design is how I’m gaining the ability to change the world.

Back in 2017, I was a fan of many K-pop artists. Whether it was Korean soloists with a mere two thousand followers or the most popular boy groups and girl groups in the world, I explored every possible avenue in the K-pop rabbit hole. When 2020 came, I started to leave behind some of the musicians I had loved for years. My tastes and interests were growing up along with me, and groups I had once adored were no longer the same to me. During that time, I stumbled upon a post regarding an SM trainee named Yu Jimin. As I learned more about her, I quickly became a part of a small community of people enthralled by a group that was yet to exist: Aespa. Even before Aespa was finalized, I was positive they were destined for greatness. What drew me in was their skills: Ningning’s vocals at age 12 far outweighed those of her current adult peers. Winter could effortlessly hit high notes with a straight face. Giselle’s first appearance was a self-written freestyle in three languages. Karina, or Yu Jimin, was the true definition of an ace and could sing, dance, and rap. Together, all four girls were perfectly chosen for their roles in one of the biggest 4th generation K-pop girl groups. When Aespa first debuted, I was in one of the darkest places in my life. My mental health got worse day by day, and as I slowly self-destructed, I found myself wanting to disappear from Earth. As ridiculous as it was, the only thing keeping me alive during that time was the wait for Aespa’s debut. The desire to see Ningning again after years of inactivity, the desire to see Yu Jimin on a big stage, and the desire to hear how they would contribute to the K-pop world were a temporary yet necessary bandaid on my desire to die. Though it was silly, it kept me alive, and the eventual impact Aespa had on K-pop and global culture was worth the wait. With their first comeback, “Next Level”, they started a viral trend in Korea that even had the likes of BTS members Jungkook and Namjoon doing the iconic “ㄷ” dance. Various Korean celebrities would do the dance unprompted in livestreams and variety shows. The “I Got a Boy"-inspired style switch-ups throughout the song led to various 4th generation K-pop groups following suit with their own music. Everything Aespa did, everyone loved.  After NewJeans’ superstellar debut, many kpop groups started to take inspiration from their fresh and nostalgic concept. Despite this, Aespa continues to stay true to their concept and contribute to global trends. Their creative team is to thank for this: Take their next comeback, Savage, as an example. Their cybersigilism album logo was iconic even amongst non-K-pop fans, who unknowingly admired the logo and concept photos for Aespa’s unique aesthetic. Another example is their most recent comeback, “Supernova”, in which the group’s experimental outfits and sound dominated South Korean, Chinese, and Japanese charts. The girls garnered the most Melon streams in a day out of any female artist this year and were even acknowledged by @NASAWebb’s Twitter account. Regardless of their successful peers, Aespa sets their own trends rather than following them. From their pre-debut days to where they are now, Aespa has undeniably become a game-changing girl group with a distinctively memorable style. Their sheer talent cannot be ignored, even on their worst days. While my admiration for many K-pop groups has faded over the years, the love I have for Aespa and their music is never-ending.

Throughout elementary and middle school, I always had a few "issues." Sure, I did well in school, but I always started assignments at the last minute. I had rejection-sensitive dysphoria and couldn’t handle the idea of disappointing others, yet anything I did outside of making good grades seemed to be disappointing. Whenever I showered, what felt like 10 minutes was actually an hour. I thought there was something innately wrong with me or that I was simply bad at keeping my life in order. However, after COVID-19, online classes taught me that my “bad habits” were actually symptoms of something deeper. Being diagnosed with ADHD made this disorder's impact on my education finally add up. The 2020–2021 school year was when my ADHD impacted me the hardest. While I was unmedicated, it was hard for me to even get out of bed. I would rot in my own room all day, and my grades deteriorated alongside my mental and physical health. Things became so bad for me that my lowest grade was an 8. I had never failed a class in my life, and yet my high school transcript was already in tatters. Without a professional environment with a teacher I could physically see, it was incredibly difficult for me to focus on assignments and ignore distractions. I didn’t bother trying to avoid disappointing people anymore. I didn’t plan to live past June 2021, and I tried to make sure of that by attempting suicide. That was a mistake. Not only had I survived past June 2021, but I made it to May 2024, the end of my senior year. When I saw my closest friends reveling in the high ranks and honors they worked hard to earn, I realized both me and my ADHD had collaborated to ruin my academic career. Even now that I make mostly As, my GPA has been irreparably damaged by my freshman year. I tell myself, “If I could change the past, I’d be better,” but I still recognize my struggles. When I received medication for the first time, I began to have hallucinations. This specific side effect only got worse with time, and in the end, I had to learn to manage my ADHD by myself. I had to remind myself that while I may perceive time differently or stress over assignments, things always ended up being easier than they looked.  Interestingly enough, I could finish months of work in weeks and intricate digital art pieces in hours. Whenever my ADHD got the best of me, I overcame it by learning to produce quality work in short periods of time. To work more efficiently, I would listen to music while doing homework or make songs out of the material I’m studying. Outside of classes, I have also been an officer in clubs like the National Art Honor Society and Animal Advocacy to learn how to manage my time for future careers. Being an officer helped me learn to wisely utilize my time, as I knew both my club members and sponsors were depending on me. My active presence in school empowered me to overcome the stress of ADHD by transforming my weaknesses into superpowers. Rather than being distracted by various things, I instead joined various clubs and participated in various activities related to my interests! This helped me transition from someone suffering from a disorder to someone living with a disorder.  I now realize I am not a problem child, nor am I necessarily a “perfect victim.” I am an artist and a writer, and I just so happen to have ADHD.

In 4th grade, I was terribly and remarkably ordinary. Similarly to everyone else my age, I was smart and had dreams, but I didn’t have a specific passion. My goals were like fluttering butterflies, aimless and free. It was not until I met my lifelong friend that I realized I could love doing something—art. Considering I was a beginner, I was very, very bad at it. My peers constantly discouraged me. They told me my art would never be like my friend’s art, and they were right. While my friend’s love for art solely stemmed from creating digital pieces, my love for art stemmed from mixed media, the impressionist movement, sculptures made of random objects, and digital art. The rainbow paint strokes of Mifuu Oda made me fall in love with color. The short brushstrokes of Van Gogh made me fall in love with beautiful yet fleeting moments. The glistening beads of @piaricapiari made me fall in love with experimenting with different materials. Yet despite that, the artist I admire most is not a painter or sculptor at all, but a photographer. Cho Giseok, who’s worked with the likes of kpop groups ‘Le Sserafim’ and ‘Red Velvet’, is a South Korean photographer who utilizes color, pattern, rhythm, repetition, and variety to create contrast, emphasis, and unity. His works taught me to have fun with my art, experiment with elements and principles, and to always remember my inner child. Remember the kid who would draw every day and every night to get better at what she loved. Remember the kid who gave her characters random accessories they didn’t need simply because they looked cool. Remember the kid who wasn’t afraid to draw things they never drew before or use materials they never used before. Remember the artist you had to be before you became the artist you wanted to be. Now that I’m a graduating senior, I’ve realized that art has made me terribly and remarkably extraordinary. I notice the different colors that make up the green grass and the blue sky. Because of the art I surround myself with daily, I’m constantly experimenting and buying new materials. I challenge myself to practice drawing like artists who are “better than me" because they were once in my shoes too. My goals are still in different places, but all of those places are places I’m completely sure I want to be in. My love of art stemmed from the desire to channel my disorganized passions into creations.

To me, design is one of the ways outside of texting or talking that we can instantly communicate with one another. If you see someone wearing clothes that match your style or designing a product that solves one of your biggest problems, you can immediately relate to them because you have the same vision. Maybe you have the same struggles, and you both have a vision for a tool that could fix those problems. Maybe you both think dresses look good on top of jeans, and you’re glad someone else feels the same way. Both outcomes ask the same question: “I understand you! Do you understand me?” Design, in any shape or form, can speak louder than words.   A career in design allows me to take ownership of my life. If I want jewelry in a specific style, I can simply make it myself. If I want to design a logo for my brand, I don’t have to pay someone for something I have the skills to do. I have the knowledge to create products that perfectly encapsulate my artistic vision, and I can 100% ensure that things are exactly the way I want them. Pursuing a degree in a design related field will transform me into someone empowered to turn their dreams to reality. The photos included show the brand I created for AP Art (Carmen Faustino), my jewelry brand (@osomeanswizard/OṢÓ, I designed the logo too!), and a poster I created for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

May 2, 2016. Sponsored by Apple, the theme of this Met Gala was fittingly ‘Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology.’ The 2016 Met Gala challenged designers to display the incorporation of technology in our daily lives through fabric. As a result, the fashion world received electronic motifs, a heavy usage of silver, glitter, sequins, and, of course, some people not following the theme at all. From the most innovative looks to the most boring, the way every fashion designer approached this concept is what makes it my favorite Met Gala theme of all time. There were quite a few attendees whose outfits exceeded my expectations, such as Zayn’s Versace bionic arm and Lady Gaga’s circuit board jacket. However, Claire Danes took the task of mixing fashion and technology to a whole new level. Designed by Zac Posen, the light blue ball gown was hand-sewn to glow in the dark using 30 mini batteries. Posen mixed organza and fiber optic strands to experiment with the motion and composition of the dress. The process behind creating this magical piece truly speaks to the statement the theme wanted to make: machine-made and handmade couture can coexist, and even collaborate, in our current world. It begged the question of how society’s technological advancements can be utilized beyond just STEM fields. The theme asked for designers to view themselves as not just creators of clothing, but as engineers. Your designs are your devices, and both take a great deal of effort to create exceptional products. Posen’s 500 hours of adept craftsmanship and configuration beautifully demonstrated how the creation of garments can change in an age of technology. Despite the self-explanatory name, many celebrities came dressed in outfits that failed to align with the theme. Madonna’s look was especially controversial, wearing a revealing lacy black ensemble designed by Givenchy. While her intended message of combating ageism and sexism is in good faith, it unfortunately does not correlate with fashion in an age of technology. A better way to express her idea while still showing skin could have been an outfit made of only wires and cables, or a leotard made of phones showing the process of making the garment on-screen. The opportunities this theme provided were endless, and yet Madonna still managed to completely miss the mark. Regardless of how anyone feels about her fashion statement, this look undeniably stood out for the wrong reasons. It failed to prove how machinery and humanity can work together and refused to acknowledge the significance of technology in our current generation. Overall, while the message of the theme itself withstands the test of time, this outfit does not. To this day, this theme continues to retain its cultural relevance. With newer concerns like how AI will impact the jobs of artists, ‘Fashion in an Age of Technology’ questions how we can band together with these new mechanisms, rather than replacing the unparalleled work of a human.

@poopoopemi