Artist Visual Arts and Film Studies - Personal Statement Example

Growing up, I always felt confined to rigid thought patterns and strict behavioral expectations. I had to live the way people around me desired, not how I wanted. Added to this was my position as a woman in a highly patriarchal society. I recognize that success would only come from struggle and commitment. My mother once told me that when I was a little girl, she never noticed when I was around because I was introspective, and was always drawing. While my interests and experience has grown significantly since this formative period, I recognize many elements of myself in this early incarnation.

Today I remain introspective and committed to art. For me, artistic expression now helps me articulate my feelings and work towards personal development and self-discovery. This is why I love the art of Frida Kahlo. She tells stories about herself and reveals the beauty in this truth. I always care to tell something in my art. I like to draw characters that reflect aspects of my personality – I want my art to speak and to tell the truth. I also recognize that oftentimes things are not black and white; in these instances, art allows me to confront my struggles.

When I consider broader issues in my life, I recognize I believe that there is nothing more beautiful than imagination. Without imagination the world’s problems cannot be tackled. . Psychodynamic theory contends that childhood experiences influence later personal development and motivation. While I am no psychologist, I oftentimes consider that my controlled and restrictive childhood greatly influenced my artistic desire for self-expression. Throughout high school in Kuwait I yearned to simply write my opinion in an essay, yet I always was restricted to what my teacher thought.

I remember watching a program about cartooning when I was a child and told my mother that is what I wanted to do with my life. I would dream about becoming an animator and construct stories to songs I would hear. My father was largely indifferent to my aspirations, instead he emphasized math. Still I persisted in my aspirations and still have a dream of becoming an animator. Each time I watch one of my favorite animated films, such as Spirited Away, Triplets of Belleville, or Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride, I get inspired about animation.

I’m applying to California Institute of the Arts because of its outstanding Master Degree in Animation program. After researching the program I came to recognize that I would make an excellent fit at your institution and strongly contribute to the artistic environment. Specifically, I appreciate your institution’s emphasis on self-express and diversity of study. I’m familiar with many student films made at your institution and appreciation their process and aesthetic quality. I recognize that many of my artistic conceptions could find expression in such an environment – I have an abundance of plans and projects that I want to bring to life.

Being half Arab and half Persian, I have a diverse cultural background that