Name: Victoria Calzolari
Major: Illustration
Minor: Undecided
Graduation Year: 2022
Why are you majoring in art? I decided to major in art because it was one of the only subjects that I had passion for and got excited about it. Sure, I enjoy English, history, and science, but art has truly given me the opportunity to explore myself and my skills to see what I can create. I realized in my sophomore year of high school that art had taken up so much of my time and energy, it had become more than just a hobby. I decided that I wanted to continue to create art and improve my skills as an artist as well as find my own style, and so going into Illustration in college was the right choice for me.
What inspires you? When it comes to what inspires me, I definitely can say that pop culture and media has had the biggest impact on me. I actually got into art back in middle school because I wanted to draw some of my favorite characters from shows I watched, and I soon just got more and more interested in art and drawing as a whole. As I began to grow as an art student, I found that what surrounds me on a day to day basic has had such a large effect on what I was drawing. I got inspiration from cartoons, video game art, comics from artist I follow on social media, and more. There is always a fun, exciting, and energetic feeling in a lot of illustrations and art in the media, and I hope I can reflect that in my work someday.
What’s been your favorite class so far? Out of all of the classes I have so far, I think my favorite has to be Computer Graphics with Professor Sue Jenkins. That class is extremely fun and allows me to be as creative as I want and put a lot of my personality into my work. The projects we make are really fun and different, my favorite projects have been the gift tags and cell phone case designs we’ve made. Through these projects I’ve been learning new skills about digital art and I have come to enjoy it a lot more than I used to!
What’s the coolest thing you’ve done at Marywood? At this point, I actually haven’t done that much at school. It’s still pretty early in my freshman year so I still have a lot I should do. I have joined the art history club though, which is extremely fun, and I have made some pretty cool projects in my art classes too!
What will you do when you graduate? I’m not 100% sure as to what I want to do when I graduate. I may go straight to work as an illustrator and try to get a job, but there’s also a chance I may try and get my teaching certification. I’ve been thinking about wanting to become an art teacher for sometime now, but I haven’t fully decided yet. There are so many possibilities and opportunities out there, I’m not sure where I’ll go or where these opportunities will take me. The one thing that I do know is that once I graduate from college I will have a whole other adventure to begin with an art degree!
Would you recommend the art program? Definitely! I would suggest to everyone that they should look into taking art courses if they have an interest in them. From the time that I have been here, my art skills and knowledge have improved so much. The art professors are extremely nice and they have helped me grow and become a better artist hands down. I can’t wait for the other art classes I get to take later in my college career!
