Semester 1

During this semester, I’ve encountered many unexpected experiences I would not have foreseen. One of the biggest surprises for me in university courses was the pace and workload of each class. During my time in high school, I had taken very rigorous classes. However, the University presented a unique experience for me. The workload appeared to be lower than I was used to, where I was presented with daily work that would take a few hours to complete, and I had expected the workload to be similar but focused on general classes and my major. On the other hand, in my university courses, I had less work assigned for a majority of my classes that would usually take much more time. I felt that my classes had not gotten easier or harder, but rather around the same amount of difficulty with different aspects of the work. Of all of my classes this semester, I found it interesting how my art theory class had a lot of synergy with the Art Scholars. One of the things that the class focused on was defining art and what characteristics make something art. In Art Scholars, I found myself exploring my artistic side through conventional ways like drawing and listening to music and more unique ways like working on my game design skills. Art is very vague and ever-changing especially since the rise in modern art and anything can be art in its own way. One thing that surprised me in the Colloquium was when we had that exercise focusing on our self-image. Usually, it is unusual to focus on such a topic especially in classes unless the subject is about one’s mental health and I had not expected it. I found it very relaxing and soothing doing the few exercises and it even improved my mood that day.

This semester, I had spent my resident life at home with all of my classes online. During my high school years, I expected online classes to have fewer online calls and more online work that I had encountered. I also had expected it to be easier to find and meet new people, however, that proved difficult these past few months due to the current pandemic. For my future semesters, I hope to be able to step out of my comfort zone more often and meet many more new and interesting people and also hope to be in a new environment once the current situation with COVID-19 clears up. On the subject of COVID-19, I had no idea what to expect. Still, I found that many situations had taken unexpected turns. With many things such as the refusal to believe the existence of the virus to the ways many different organizations and institutions had dealt with it, I’d say the most surprising was when many schools had pushed to stay completely open during the Fall 2020 semester. While I do understand that certain classes had a lot more difficulty switching to online classes, I felt that everyone’s health was meant to be of utmost importance. Luckily, I was glad to see UMD take many steps and precautions to keep the majority of the people safe. I had expected that either schools would completely disregard the student’s and staff’s health or that they would push to move completely online, so I was pleasantly surprised to see the university try to accommodate as many people as possible during this crucial time.

From all of the experiences I’ve had the opportunity to be a part of, I would have to say that the Game Night event led by my peer mentor was the most impactful. I have had a lot of trouble meeting and interacting with other students this semester, but once I had decided to join, I had a lot of fun and even made some new friends. Without that experience, I most likely would have had a lot of trouble trying to interact with other Art Scholars and students in general. I believe that after this experience, I’ve become more open to the idea of attending events and hope that I’ll be able to attend many more and meet many more people.

Semester 2

When looking back on this semester, it was quite a challenge to overcome. Not only were classes online again, but my classes were more demanding this semester. However, despite that, I was still able to pursue my artistic interests by starting again on some previous projects I set aside and also pursuing new interests such as relearning the piano. Also, I got to meet some of the friends I had made in Art Scholars. Having good friends during tough times helped me cope because we could spend time together to distress. I believe that the next year's freshman will benefit from having friends who can help them with topics they don't understand, but also to spend some time relaxing. Building a community of people who are able to support each other is a crucial part of Art Scholars to me. I enjoyed meeting new people with similar interests to me who were able to support me when I needed it. One of the biggest ways I believe the feeling of community is created is by having peer mentors. Grouping the students into smaller groups makes it easier for people to interact more and have an engaging peer mentor is important in aiding that. My peer mentor held a few events this semester and over this semester and last, we became good friends. While I myself will not be returning as a peer mentor, I want to be able to be as supportive as she was for me in the upcoming semesters. When I had first joined, it was quite intimidating how talented many of the other students were, but I feel that getting to know others in this program has to help me become more confident in myself and the work I am able to create.

I have always viewed art as a way of expressing myself or telling a story. However, I have tended to prefer stories more because of how interesting and creative I can be. However, viewing this year about just how important art is in many different movements in the past and in contemporary times, has made me appreciate expressing myself more in art because in doing so, I also get to connect with others who feel the same way. I think that future Art Scholars might realize that art can help bring a community together behind a cause or draws others that share the same feelings as them.

Out of everything that did happen this semester, the thing that I feel benefitted me the most was the workshops. My workshop was about creative writing and while I have had an interest in it, I never thought that I was good at it. Spending some time learning about writing and then practicing really helped me improve so that I was able to write a story that meant something to me and build interesting characters in a unique world. I am especially grateful for that because even if it is not in the field I would prefer, it has given me more of an understanding and a different way of approaching my preferred form of art. With all of the knowledge I have gained and the practice I have done, I feel more confident in the fact that I am able to create a game that will mean a lot to me and hopefully to others as well. I believe that incoming Art Scholars can make the most out of their experience in the program by interacting with others and taking steps towards improving their art. Doing is one of the best ways to learn and having others to help when you struggle is effective ways to improve skill and Art Scholars definitely does offer both to everyone in the program.

Semester 3

This semester provided a variety of new experiences and challenges for me. Firstly, it was the first semester living and attending classes on campus. Additionally, throughout this semester, I got the chance to learn and explore art in different ways. We went over the process of formulating and creating through research, brainstorming, preparation, and feedback. From which I have seen that when art has the purpose of creating change, a lot of thought goes into it. Firstly, art can build off of our current knowledge to express an idea. Using well-known symbols or icons and presenting them in a new light can cause a person to start thinking about whether or not they agree with the new information presented. For example, using Uncle Sam to criticize the United States or using an innocent child to show the cruelness of war. Using something well-known or universal allows for a wider audience and a clearer message. However, no matter how well-known an idea or symbol is, it can become easy to misrepresent it when proper preparation is not taken. Using strategies like researching the topic and other artwork that has presented a similar idea or different stance on the same topic can give an artist a better idea of where they stand with this. For example, comparing and contrasting anti-war messages and US war propaganda to have a better understanding of how they convey their message. Additionally, getting feedback from others is an integral part of creating art. If a reviewer tells the artist they can’t understand the message or disliked parts of it, the artist can take what they suggested into consideration, determine whether it is relevant to the goal they are trying to achieve, and decide whether or not to tweak their art based on the feedback. Having a wide variety of feedback from lots of different people can help weed out bias and overall improve the artwork as a whole. One notable art piece with a huge impact was the TV show Squid Game on Netflix. The Korean show became a huge success and follows a story that expresses criticisms on topics such as capitalism and the current state of those in poverty. The show illustrates how those with money become untouchable while those in poverty are easily erased due to their lack of status. Additionally, money has become such an integral part of a capitalistic society that those who have it can do what they like while those who don’t are willing to do whatever they can, even risking death, just to have it. Watching the show helps reaffirm how large the disbalance is and helps us draw parallels with the story and the society we live in every day. Being part of the Arts program has helped me in identifying the purpose of art and how it can be used to connect with others. Using what I learned in the Arts program, I’ve become better at seeing how different art mediums can influence our thinking.

During my time in Art Scholars, I have taken a few courses towards my major. As a computer science major, many of my classes have focused on logic and math rather than the creative process. However, over time I’ve begun to see parallels in them and Art Scholars. First, both art and programming can be used in a variety of ways to aid a problem. Art tends to focus on creativity and sharing ideas while the problems programs solve tend to be more concert and focused on efficiency. Also, the processes in formulating and creating them both are very similar. It requires lots of background knowledge, brainstorming, and laying the foundation before creating anything. Having a basic blueprint will help in creating the project in the later stage in both by having a clear idea of the goal and helping with staying on top of things in the long run. Lastly, both art and programs are living breathing projects that continue to have an effect long after they are completed. For example, I learned in CMSC 132 that programs are tweaked and changed over the years, and many programs have been working for over a decade, long after it was created. Similarly, art pieces can still influence our thoughts and emotions many years down the line, such as Picasso’s Guernica. Years after the war had come and gone, it still shows how cruel war and terrifying war can be which still rings true decades after it was created. Just like how art outlives the artists, programs too will outlive their programmers before their purpose.

My learning experience was improved by interacting with fellow art Scholars since I felt I could connect with others easier. Becoming friends with people who have similar classes is always a plus because it makes it easier to collaborate or clarify information or assignments for the class. With Scholars having a strong emphasis on community, it becomes even more important to have connections to learn from others and grow. This semester, I was able to participate in the community through colloquium and field trips. In colloquium discussions, I was able to share my ideas and also continuously take feedback from others to learn and grow as an artist. Also, I took a field trip to watch a performance about Rich Kids that was told like an Instagram story. The performance was thought-provoking and made me wonder how I can be more creative in the delivery of my message. In the future, I hope to participate in opportunities that interact with more people or something that can assist someone in need, whether that need be small or large. For example, volunteer work, or helping fellow Art Scholars by giving feedback on their Capstone Projects. Personally, being a part of scholars brought me into contact with people with differing interests and hobbies from me. In Scholars, there are a variety of people that have interests in subjects like painting, dancing, and writing. I tend to spend a lot of my time with computers, so it can be difficult for me to do other activities, especially when I have no experience in them. For example, I met someone very talented at writing but struggles with math and programming while the opposite is true for me. Meeting others with different strengths and weaknesses helps highlight what I am capable of and where I can improve in the future.

Semester 4

Over the past two years in Arts Scholars, I've had the opportunity to have a ton of different experiences that were added to my ePortfolio. I’ve had the most growth when participating in the pentathlons because each time I would get to spend time with fellow Art Scholars and experience something new and interesting. Because of the pentathlons, I was also able to spend more time interacting and immersing myself in art than I have previously. For example, I recently spent time walking around campus and sketching the scenery. One experience that stuck with me was when I saw a dance performance at the Clarice where the different performers did interpretative dances. The art I enjoy and create is usually more explicit such as written narratives, so it was a completely different experience watching the performers tell a story with body movement. Not only were they incredibly skilled and talented, but I was drawn in and intrigued by something I had never seen before. Another performance that stuck with me was a field trip where we watched a live-streamed play called Rich Kids: A History of Shopping Malls in Tehran. The performers used YouTube and Instagram to tell a story about the children of the Rich showing off their wealth and followed the narrative of two kids that ended up dying in a car accident. Unconventionally, the story was told backward with the most recent events showing up last like an Instagram. They would also periodically switch from talking on Youtube to going on Instagram Live and as the story would go on, the performers would make me feel uncomfortable and existential because of all the strange glitchy edits and the creepy vibe. I have been a fan of art that challenges the medium, but before then, I had never seen such a creative and unique way to convey a story to people and impact the way they feel. My capstone project depended on story-telling techniques, so I ended up drawing from feedback from others. In colloquiums, we learned how to give a receive good feedback and with this knowledge, I was able to gather good criticisms on my writing and characters and could alter it to better connect with the audience. Additionally, learning about inspiring creativity was a valuable lesson. When I struggle with coming up with ideas, I end up finding myself in a block for a while but learning a few tricks such as going for mindful walks and sleeping on the issue helped give me more tools to get through a good portion of the creative process of working on the project. There were many things that had to design such as characters, setting, and plot, so being able to inspire more ideas from me helped me keep a good momentum going. My capstone allowed me to express my creativity because I developed my own video game. I’ve always had an interest in games and using my background in programming, I was able to create a demo. I also worked on developing my drawing skills and had planned on trying to create music for it originally which allowed me to grow as an artist and develop skills I had not much experience in before. Of course, with a variety of people in Scholars, comes a variety of talents. A time I was able to collaborate with others with different interests and abilities was a podcast project we had during the first year of Scholars. We had to come up with a relevant podcast topic and interview three people. My group ended up focusing on how Covid and quarantine restrictions affected the jobs of people on campus. We split up the roles and ended up having one person conduct the interviews and do the narration and another design and draw the cover art while I edited it together. Using a variety of different skills and a lot of communication, we were able to create a final product. My experience with Scholars allowed me to experience working with other artists and also the research and preparation that goes into a project. Collaboration is an important skill to have no matter what field a person is in, but working on a creative with others can be nerve-wracking or hard to figure out at first. Experience in presenting your personal strengths and working around others’ strengths is always good to gain. Additionally, I had never made a proposal and formula researched for an artistic project, so the whole experience was new and a great learning experience for me. Lastly, I personally was able to get more experience in staying committed to a project I was personally invested in. Normally, I would never have time or motivation to be able to stick to a project for a while or the early frustrations would make it hard to continue. Having to stick to the project and adapt it to what I could realisticly do helped me grow a lot as an artist, and I believe I can use this experience when working on future artistic projects.