For me, high school was a lot of growth condensed into a short period of time. The isolation of COVID really helped me reflect on who I wanted to spend my time around, and by my junior year I felt more confident about what truly matters to me. I went to Monticello High, and my senior year I did Center One, which is a joint program with all the Albemarle County high schools focused on media communication, design, and coding. I ended up doing a lot of video editing, and that got me into art.
I submitted a portfolio to VCU Arts and was accepted, but the program felt a little too rushed for me, like I was being funneled into a specific major right away. I started exploring other options, and after visiting family friends in Sweden, something just drew me to the country. I can’t explain it!
So, last year I found a little art school, in Stockholm, applied and got in! I love the way our instructors taught us: not trying to make something specific, but instead, let’s see what happens. Experimenting: grab an apple, or some grass, or some paper, and paint with it. Just see what happens! That unlocked my love of painting. This year I’m in a more intensive painting program, and I love it.
Everyone else in my program is Swedish, so the language has been a bit of a barrier. But it’s one of the easiest languages for English speakers to pick up on, although the grammar is hard. But I have the perspective that growing up, I knew people who didn’t speak English well, and I never judged them for trying. So when I feel embarrassed to try to speak in Swedish, or worried I’ll mess up, I just think back and realize nobody is thinking of me in a judgemental way. They’re happy I’m trying to communicate, and that makes it easier to try.
I’m hoping I’ll be able to continue in a full university program in Sweden. The way the society is constructed just feels very smooth, like being a whole person is very valued, and you feel taken care of. I love being in a large city where I can walk just a few minutes away and be in nature. It’s been so fun getting to live in and experience a new country.
My advice for Peabody students is that after graduating from Peabody, I realized what a bubble it can be – in a good way! We were doing and learning really hard stuff! I have so many fun memories of Peabody — the teachers doing a Flash Mob, all the fun Kids Night Out adventures. It’s funny because I was certain I wanted to be an engineer, so the advice I have for younger students is: don’t box yourself in! You can decide you know what you want to do, but leave room for something to change, because you never know what might inspire you. Try to approach life like an experiment. It’s hard to believe in the moment, but mistakes can truly be a great thing!