I am a female artist born and raised on the south side of Chicago, IL, where public art is anything but lacking. Since the day I was born, I've been exposed to the murals that lit up and saturated the south side neighborhoods of Chicago and they sparked in me an infatuation with visual arts. I applied to many visual art schools with not a lot of hope in my heart, and a few months later I received an acceptance letter from my top choice School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Since then, I completed my freshman year exploring places in the city where I never thought I'd find art and creating things in ways I never thought of. During my first semester I created a piece titled "Connection to my Mind," made from melted soap and fabric I found in a recycling bin to showcase my love for music through art. The piece was an absolute hit during my critique and my professors pushed for me to try out sculpture. Exploring the idea of art in places you wouldn't look and creating with ordinary objects like soap or ripped fabric has been what's peaked my curiosity the most in college, and I've loved seeing the look on people's faces when I told them I made a sculpture out of soap, and even more, the look on their faces when I show them the sculpture. What I want to do after college is still fuzzy to me right now, and there's a lot of different things I would like to do. However, my non-negotiable for my future is passing on the idea of looking to create with everyday objects to the next generation of artists. I want to tap into the curiosity of the next generation and show them that art isn't just a painting or sketch on the page, but that art is all around us from the paper we write on to the bar of soap from the drugstore.

I am a female artist born and raised on the south side of Chicago, IL, where public art is anything but lacking. Since the day I was born, I've been exposed to the murals that lit up and saturated the south side neighborhoods of Chicago and they sparked in me an infatuation with visual arts. When I began drawing and painting, I was never encouraged that it would be something I could pursue in college until my junior year of high school when my art teacher encouraged me to enter my print "Help Yourself" into the School of the Art Institute's All City Visual Art Exhibition. To my surprise I got in, with a piece of art that was so beloved and personal in the way that it demonstrated my struggle with body image and mental health. After such a positive experience at this exhibition I became even more infatuated with the arts and began compiling a portfolio so that I could apply to art schools around the country. I applied to many with not a lot of hope in my heart, and a few months later I received an acceptance letter from my top choice School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Since then, I completed my freshman year exploring places in the city where I never thought I'd find art and creating things in ways I never thought of. During my first semester I created a piece titled "Connection to my Mind," made from melted soap and fabric I found in a recycling bin to showcase my love for music. Exploring the idea of art in places you wouldn't look and creating with ordinary objects like soap or ripped fabric has been what's peaked my curiosity the most in college, and I've loved seeing the look on people's faces when I told them I made a sculpture out of soap and even more the look on their faces when I show them the sculpture. What I want to do after college is still fuzzy to me right now, and there's a lot of different things I would like to do. The main thing I do have planned for my future is passing on the idea of looking to create with everyday objects to the next generation of artists. I want to tap into the curiosity of the next generation, and show them that art isn't just a painting, but that it's all around us from the paper we write on to the bar of soap from the drugstore.