Jessica Menjivar, a Freshman at Wilcox, enjoys sketching people and views. Menjivar explains that she feels joy and satisfaction when the process comes together to create her final product. Her experimentation with art has amounted to many things like learning new ways to draw, being able to draw something she never thought she could, being able to perfect her failures, and becoming a lot more creative and descriptive with her art. 

Jessica has been involved with art since the 4th grade ━ it has been a long process to gain inspiration and master her talent. Menjivar says, “One thing that got me inspired was my friend Alina Armenta. She was very good at drawing and influenced me to do sketches and was also someone who inspired me with ideas.” She started by trying something new, thus forming a passion and enjoyment for art, though she became anxious to learn and familiarize herself with the hobby.

Menjivar found stories that inspired many ideas for her creations, namely “the mangas Toilet Bound Hanako-Kun [and] Chainsawman manga, the game Mystic Messenger, Doki Doki Literature Club, Total Drama Island, the webtoon Nice to Meet You and many more.” This collection struck ideas for her art, but also motivated her to put herself out there. Another aspiration they drew upon her was to become someone who writes stories, just like the ones that electrified her connection with art. She dreams to have her art be seen by important people and hope that someday her art might take her somewhere big. With the stories encouraging her new goals, they also made her think about new opportunities like colleges: new studies that she may be able to take and a wide array of jobs she would enjoy. 

When asked about her experience with art, Menjivar talks about how she started becoming more passionate about art. She had taken classes in middle school, so entering high school grounds, she decided to pursue them, gushing, “I thought it’d be cool because art is a way to express yourself . . . [and] you can create so many things. . .and learn more about them.” For instance, a drawing Menjivar has done that she is very proud of was a full body character. She notes that she has never really been the best at drawing faces and bodies so once she was able to draw one that actually looked like what she imagined, she was amazed with herself.

While on the note of how she wanted to take art classes this year, Menjivar mentions how her experience has been in art class: “It’s fun, intro to art is really fun! You get to experience different media and multimedia. I’ve stuck to drawing. It’s fun trying new things while also making new friends,” she raves with excitement.  So far, she loves art and is becoming more amorous about it. Not only does she get to learn and further her interest in drawing, she also gains more experience with the new strategies the class has been teaching. 

A piece of advice Menjivar excitedly provides those who want to try art is simple — “It doesn’t matter how the outcome comes because it’s like a process of trying to better yourself.  If it doesn’t turn out the way you want it to look, it’s still a masterpiece to you or someone else.” Menjivar is always satisfied with the outcome whether it is good or bad, and continues to love and have a strong fondness for art. Menjivar looks forward to her art classes at Wilcox and becoming more experienced, along with following her dreams and passions around the hobby.