For as long as I can remember I have been someone who is obsessed with designing fictional characters. As a child I built my own worlds through imagination, pencil and paper. I watched animated Disney movies countless times, never tiring of the designs of the characters. I read graphic novels and Japanese manga, poring over each character’s backstory and traits. I later transitioned into watching Japanese anime. To this day I am still heavily inspired by the works of Hayao Miyazaki, a japanese animation director. His seemingly lighthearted yet unusual premises with darker undertones always drew me in and I aspired to create concepts like his. This started me down the path to becoming a character design artist, creating more complex and unique characters with the help of technology and the drawing skills I obtained through my school years. My work communicates creativity and storybuilding. However, not only do I like to work with the unique, but also the frightening and unsettling. Ironically, I am an easily frightened person. I am still afraid of the dark and I cannot watch scary movies. Yet, my own fear inspires me. This is how I came about my collection of work this semester. 

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Everyone has some sort of fear. So what if fears, or someone being afraid of that fear, was personified? I want to not only make my viewers uncomfortable, but also myself. So I am working with not only fears that people have, but that I also have. The fear is what inspires and fascinates me. Despite being unsettled while I draw, shivering at the images, I am enthralled. Working with the frightening is invigorating and exciting. It keeps me on my toes and makes me really think as an artist. My vision is that each of these fears gain personality, a physical form, and purpose. I will show people that reaction is the key to a successful art work.