In 2012, at the age of 32, I found myself unemployed with an unfinished education. I decided to return to my academic pursuits with a shift towards my passion of art. Enrolling in the graphic design program as a Ragin’ Cajun I immediately felt that I was on the right path of finishing my education.
Making art and discovering my true self in the process has been the most fulfilling and rewarding for my personal growth and self-worth. In my third year I took an intro to photo course as an elective, and under the guidance of my wonderful professor and accomplished fine artist Ms. Lynda Frese, I quickly discovered my talents and artistic voice were more suited for the field of photography. I continued the next semester with more photo courses and in the Fall of 2015 I entered my first juried exhibition at the annual juried student visual arts exhibition. My digital print, Life Nocturnal, which was my final project from my Intro to Photography course in the previous semester, placed Best in Show with over 100 other works submitted by over 40 other students across all of the visual arts disciplines.
It was shortly after this watershed moment for me that I decided to transfer out of graphic design and declare my intent for a degree in photography. My relationships with my academic colleagues since this transfer have been encouraging, positive, and less apprehensive than my time in graphic design - though I still have a passion for design as well and continue to do side work in the field.
