I do what I do because I enjoy it. Obvious? Yes, but that’s truly the reason why. I have, on too many occasions to count, found so much happiness in seeing something that I consider visually appealing, and sometimes even if its not (solely in my own opinion). I want to learn more about the subject, refine my skills, work on my technique, and soak in anything and everything I can from my teachers. I can still vividly recall many of the lessons i’ve ever learned that I took away from a painting class I took in the spring of my junior year. Almost two years later, I still apply the rules and skills i was taught into my work today. Not only did I learn about art itself, but I learn a lot about myself and who I am as an artist. However, I know that it is so hard to “make-it” in the art world, that I am prepared to face reality and acquire an outside income from a more stable job. As I have consistently done in the past up until now, I do my artwork in my free time, on my own terms. In the future, surrounding a job with at least a somewhat-steady income, I hope to be able to find the time to work/create/learn more each day. And, realistically, I want to be able to finance the projects I might dream up, and without an outside job or sponsors (or a non-existent trust fund), that is almost impossible. I plan on double-majoring or minoring in either Art+Psychology, Art+Creative Advertising, or Art+Communications. What I can hope for is to find a profession that incorporates my love for design/art/visuals into what I do. For the moment, I envision my self (if all goes well) working in creative advertising, or graphic design. That way, I am combining my interests in design to a profession that will hopefully aid me on a double-spectrum.

My skills? (**skillz)

I can wiggle my ears, cross my eyes, and make a three-leaf clover with my tongue, but none of that is relevant. In terms of art, my skills began developing when I was in preschool, teaching myself how to color within the lines and cut out shapes without jagged edges. The rest is history. I can draw pretty decently, I can paint pretty well, and I can take an amateur photograph, but what I really want to work on is realism. One of the biggest struggles I have/have had in art classes is achieving realism when I need to. Whether it’s my eye for observation that needs to be worked on, or maybe just my overall perception, I would love to be able to work on something and have it encompass more realistic dimensionality.

In addition to realism, I want to acquire more skill in straight “imagination”. A lot of the time, my pieces start from a desire to try out a new technique or color scheme that I’ve seen used in another piece, working and forming my own ideas after my imagination was sparked from seeing something else. What I’d love to be able to do is come up with a million things off the top of my head without any help from reference, and without a necessary “prompt” or “assignment”. Just sheer imagination.

Have you ever seen something and had an immediate desire to try it for yourself? Well, make it. We live in color, so why not work with it?

Hi, I’m Leslie Antell. I’m an artist with a really good eye for design. I’m really into painting, drawing, and graphic design, but I predominantly work in mixed media. I work for visual appeal. In other words, I am passionate about continuing to like what I like, dislike what I don’t, and be uncertain about the things I’m uncertain about. However, I do know what the consumer likes. Give me a shot, and you won’t be disappointed. Doubt me, and I’ll prove you wrong.

When am i motivated? Occasionally…

Depending on the project, I am either at a motivation level equivalent to super-woman, or a slug. When it comes to school, I find it easy to be motivated to complete work that is straightforward, such as handouts that need filling out, completion of an online quiz, a specific number of problem sets, etc. But when it comes to ambiguous assignments that need a lot of interpretation, due to the nature of the homework or the unclear-ness of the directions, I am usually dragging my feet through the mud to get it completed.

In art, it can go both ways. If im assigned a task that has me inspired or my mind racing with ideas from the second it is announced, my level of motivation skyrockets. However, same as with lucid academic assignments, if I am to complete an assignment that has nothing going for it, or is completely pointless, I find it incredibly hard to find the motivation to work through it and get it done. Typically, i’m inspired when i see something that interests me and sparks a desire to try the technique used in said piece, or to try something within the same color-scheme.

However, one of the biggest challenges I face on a day-to-day basis is the struggle to avoid distraction. If I am fully engaged in a project or piece, usually very little can deter my mind from staying focused, but if I am becoming frustrated with an assignment, or am working on something I’d rather abandon altogether, almost anything can distract me.

To be honest, I don’t quite know how to answer this prompt. Of course I value honesty, friendship, and my family, but I guess i’ve never really thought specifically about what else it is that I value. Honestly, I looked up the definition of Value with the hope that it would help me spark some sort of thought that could get me started on this post. Using the somewhat crude, but easy Dictionary.com, I found that I needed to write about value as “relative worth, merit, or importance.” I think in my perspective the things I try and live by/hold myself to on a daily basis are what I would consider my values. Things like emphasizing communication between myself and those that I care about, as well as integrity, respect, and patience are what I try and work on each and every day. Although I wouldn’t at all consider myself an immoral person, or someone that is particularly impatient, I think that a constant awareness of those values is what is important to me. However, one thing I value highly is awareness of the needs and feelings of those around me. Due to certain experiences at boarding school I have become extremely impatient with anyone that is completely oblivious to anyone else other than themselves. Coincidentally, that value plays a large role in our lives as college students, living in dorms with small rooms and a roommate. If you cant be conscience of other’s need to sleep, their privacy, and respect for their belongings, then you need to reevaluate your own values.

On a separate note, I value the things that I know I need to improve on, which is why I noted communication as one of my main values. I’m not always the most confrontational person, and I let things boil up inside of me until im pretty much enraged, but working each and every day to be honest about the way im feeling and when im upset about something can only help me become a better person, and a better sister, daughter, friend, and classmate.

To close, I would have to say that I don’t quite know what my values are just yet, but I’ve got time, and I know that I want to become a better person each and every day, even if it only happens in small increments.

My work habits in one word: scattered. Between other schoolwork, life, and art, my work schedule never seems to stay consistent. At times I’m incredibly motivated, ready to complete everything I have to do in one sitting, and at other times I find it takes me 4 1/2 hours to complete a drawing, math exercise, or reading that would’ve otherwise taken me 45 minutes. At home, my work space is the floor of my bedroom, much to my mother’s dismay/fear of marks/glue/paint on the carpet. Only when I went to boarding school my Sophomore year of high school did I learn how to do (some) work at a desk. In short: my philosophy is that a desk is a limited space. You have edges and boundaries that limit your ability to lay everything out in front of you and see all that you need to accomplish, hence the allure of the floor, where, excluding the walls, you have unlimited space to have anything and everything you wish right out in front of, or around you. For me, artwork is either done standing, or sitting on my knees on the ground practically on top of the piece I’m working on.

On a separate note, while a minimum of 6 1/2 hours of sleep is necessary for me to operate as a competent human being in regular classes, I have often found that I can miraculously stay up all night working on anything using my right-brain function with ease. However, napping is unfortunately not an option for me as I have never once in my life been able to sleep during the day unless I am bedridden with illness. I don’t drink coffee or tea, and I am extremely easily distracted, but I have found over time that my best work is done at home over school holidays or in the summer when I have complete control over my work, my space, my timing, and my life.

Im a Yankee. But, not really, because I don’t particularly care for baseball. I was raised in Greenwich, CT. A large, pretty suburb of New York City, lending me access to one of the world’s main cultural epicenters. However, the middle of five kids, there was already a lot of culture in my own house. Culture that revolved around a lot of noise, crying baby sisters, my older siblings going through adolescence, and me being stuck in the middle of it all. Always observant, I learned a lot in my childhood about people and the many different ways in which we choose to express ourselves. For me, that meant drawing, painting, cutting up paper, gluing things together, and making as big a mess as I could possibly manage without my mother wanting to absolutely kill me. This, is the product of that.