Growing up watching cartoons and reading comics, I’ve always wanted to be the kid that got powers, had an alien friend, and went on all the adventures. Unfortunately, a role like that was few and far between for me. Being an artist allows me to make that possible. I want to create worlds people can escape to and live out their wildest dreams without being bound to the roles society has deemed appropriate. I plan to have a positive impact on the world through my art by amplifying the voices of people of color, especially Black women. In the fall, I will be transferring colleges to study animation, which is a heavily white male-dominated field. There is a severe lack of women of color aiding in creating the animated shows and movies we see today, which is a strong reason why we are underrepresented as lead characters. I believe if there were more of us to advocate for our stories, we’d see more representative and nuanced characters. Doing that will enable the next generation of young black girls to feel seen. Beyond the animation industry, I also am working on creating YouTube content. YouTube has been a beneficial learning tool for me as an artist and I plan to pass on the skills I’ll learn in hopes of sharing my journey as an artist and inspiring other young black artists to pursue their dreams. To make a positive impact on the world it’s essential to share experiences and pass on knowledge. I will do this by being a part of the necessary change in the community that I grew up idolizing. I’m very excited to start this next journey and expand on my skills as an artist. To create art that the young me and plenty of others like me would have wanted to see on tv.

I believe that inside everyone is true potential waiting to be set free. From imagination to passion and desires: it is waiting to be explored free of limitations. In my art, I represent this sentiment through contrasting colors and grayscale. Color is everything one could be or could have, while the grayscale is everything holding one back. I like to use this concept to depict my relationship with anxiety, which is best portrayed, in my favorite piece, Renewed. In this drawing, I wanted this concept to shine through different beings. The original body acts as a vessel containing a physical representation of an individual's spirit. In the foreground, a girl is pushing her way out of her vessel with a bright smile. I chose this; to highlight that though the situation might look uncomfortable it is still a positive one. Growing up, I’ve struggled often with anxiety, which is the root of my feeling trapped in myself. I wanted this piece to be bright and hopeful to show that while pushing past mental or physical limitations: you are bettering yourself, which should be commended. At the feet of the vessel, it slowly starts to lose its color as the spirit emerges and leaves behind a stone-like statue. On the left side, I included a frog visiting their past vessel. I wanted to show that it’s important to recognize where we came from. Though the shell was once what limited them it no longer represents who they are, leaving just respect for its place in their journey. This is a projection of where I want to be as a person and an artist. I want to continue pushing my boundaries and eventually look back at my past like an old friend. Additionally, I often find myself daydreaming about new worlds and fantastical creatures. This drawing depicts a literal view of how I want my imagination to live outside of myself. In conclusion, my number one goal as an artist is to create worlds where people can escape and put aside the struggles of everyday life: Renewed captures this perfectly. I want pieces like this to identify with people who know they can be more than who they currently are. And to use my art as inspiration to push themselves towards their goals, no matter the limitations they face. I value; the importance of believing in ourselves because true potential resides in us all.