When did you participate in the Shooting Stars program?

I participated in Shooting Stars in 2015, my senior year at Blue Valley Northwest.

How did you use your Shooting Stars experience or scholarship?

The award helped me attend Savannah College of Art and Design to study Industrial Design.

What type of fine/performing/visual art were you passionate about then and do you still pursue that art today?

While at BVNW, I enrolled in a sculpture class for fun, and little did I know it would change my life. John Butcher, my sculpture teacher and mentor, helped me cultivate a passion that would stick with me to this day. In high school, sculpture quickly became my primary focus. After graduating from BVNW, studying Industrial Design was a natural fit for me. It challenged me merge product design with sculpture to create beautiful and useful objects.

What has been happening in your life since you participated in the Shooting Stars program?

I am currently a senior at SCAD, finishing my BFA in Industrial Design. Over the past four years I have been finding new passions and interests. Designing and building props has been my focus for my time at SCAD. I have worked on student movies, stage shows, and even a sci-fi space suit that has virtual reality built into the helmet. Any opportunity I get that merges product design with telling a fun and compelling story, I jump at.

Aside from school work, I have had some great opportunities to travel and follow new interests. During the winter of 2017, I spent a few months studying at the SCAD Hong Kong campus. This opened up many doors for me,and allowed me to travel to places I never thought I would see. I have also been restoring a 1965 Mustang with my father. I have taken this project as a design challenge, reinterpreting the car in my vision as a designer, rather than restoring it to original condition.

How has the Shooting Stars program helped you to become a better artist?

Shooting Stars is a confidence boost like none other to creatives. It is the final push needed by many students, such as myself, that encourages them to pursue a creative career. Taking bold steps are a must to become successful, and this gave me the confidence to take that first step. It put me on a course that would not have been found otherwise, and I am forever thankful.