Here’s what I wrote for my Personal Statement in my University Application Form:
My interest in art started back in school when I was still in the Philippines. There were days when I would get called out in class to draw or illustrate something because I was good at it. But at that time, art to me was only a matter of using drawing materials and a surface to express an idea whilst enjoying what you do. It was not until my first year at college doing an art and design course did I find out about the wide variety of media and techniques available to produce art. The fascination and enthusiasm I have for it helped me realize how much pleasure I get in producing unique pieces that both inspire and amuse people.
Together with art, photography is also something that I have immense passion for. It started when I was fourteen as I started to browse through online portfolios of young photographers like myself. The photographs they produced were really compelling and from then on, I knew that I wanted to do the same so I started to use whatever tool I had to capture surreal imagery. I find something about photographs that you can never really get from any other medium and I think that is the fact that you are stealing a spur moment from reality and translating it into a hard copy giving not only you but also the rest of the world the chance to fully see and appreciate it over and over again.
My basic knowledge and skills in Textiles, Graphics, Life Drawing and 3D Craft plus the fact that I am semi-trilingual and was born and raised in Asia are things that give me and my work versatility because it enables me to approach projects and create concepts differently. Artists like Robert Rauschenberg and Anselm Keifer have inspired me to be more creative in terms of mixing media. I find the use of unconventional processes and materials as the most effective way to join elements of different subjects together to get outstanding results. Examples of mixed media work I have produced are my City Life and Hope projects that I did last year using drawing, traditional printing, photography and digital manipulation.
Studying photography as a major allowed me to learn so much more about composition and how it affects everything I produce. I want to be able to use that knowledge to really excel in the art industry and also inspire people just like how other artists have inspired me. One of the artists that I admire is Jerry Uelsmann. He helped me appreciate film photography even more due to his layered images that were all done within the darkroom. I also consistently follow young contemporary artists who are not far along my age group because these people always remind me that if they can do it, I can too. Some of them are Rockie Nolan, Tricia Gosingtian, Audrey Kawasaki and Mary Robinson.
I constantly take photographs even though they are not college-related to develop my abilities. An online craft shop called Rikyandnina is currently using several of my photographs to advertise and promote their products. The internet is also one of the biggest platforms out there and I use it to exhibit my work to a variety of people. During my first year at college, I received the highest marks attainable in the course, DDD, and I intend intend to perform similarly in my second year as well as when I get to university.
My education is one of the most important things in my life right now and studying a degree at university is definitely going to give me more knowledge and experience. It would also help me progress into a professional artist who can present work with much more depth and sophistication.
Challenging myself to be a better artist has become second nature to me since everyone out there can be artists but only the ones with determination ever succeed. That determination is always going to back me up wherever I go and whatever I do and with that plus creativity, I know that I am on the track of being the best I can be.
