Larson Riccoboni, Arts and Tech Editor
@larsonrcourant
A sophomore at New Canaan High School, Jennie has been able to focus on her artistic talents during the past year. At 15 years old, the accomplished artist uses her talents to experiment with her style, utilize professional-level programs, and even do commissions for a variety of clients.
Due to the pandemic, she found herself with more time on her hands and started to draw again for the first time in a few years. Her love for drawing began when she was just in kindergarten but sometime in middle school she felt that she wasn’t that good enough, and stopped altogether for a period of time. However, when Jennie was online learning at home she said, “I was sitting in front of my computer, and I was like ‘I shouldn’t leave this drawing pad and do nothing with it, I should give it a second try,’”.
Jennie works exclusively with the program Adobe Photoshop. While this program is better known for its graphic art and photo editing software, Jennie uses it for digital drawings and paintings. Using a drawing tablet, Jennie creates her artwork. She explained that it takes her anywhere from 12-14 hours from start to finish. With her drawings being predominantly portrait-based, Jennie shared that she finds her inspiration from well-known artists such as portrait painter John Sargent.
Currently, Jennie is enrolled in a virtual art class that teaches character design and animation styles for gaming. The class is from a company based out of China, where Jennie is originally from. In her free time she applies what she learns in these classes in her art, focusing on anatomical proportions, still life and shadows and light.
Over the course of the past year, Jennie has found success with commission work doing custom drawings for her clients. “I remember in seventh grade in art class my classmates were all saying ‘You draw really well! Are you going to draw for a living in the future?’” she said. Although she was hesitant at first, Jennie has now realized she would like to pursue art as a career. “It’s really hard to find a job that you enjoy working on and have money to work on it but I am really happy that I’ve found that,” Jeanie said.
Even though Jennie is not taking any art classes here at NCHS currently, she was able to take a drawing class with Ms. Core last year. She also participates in the Art Club held after school. Ms. Core notes Jennies drive and skill at such a young age, commenting on her artistic style. “She makes the digital work look like it’s a traditional piece, and she’s got that handcrafted touch which is so hard when you’re working digitally,” Mrs. Core said. “It looks like actual paint strokes and the colors are just amazing.”
As a part of the Art Club, Jennie was able to assist in creating the concept art for the upcoming mural. The whole club helped contribute ideas for the mural with Jennie bringing the idea to life. “[Jennie’s] an expert on Photoshop, so she took the photo and scaled it up to the dimensions of the wall we’ll be using, and made it look like it was already painted on there,” Mrs. Core said. “Then she duplicated the ram, flipped it, and made it more of a composition with more than one with Ram.”
Jennie says she enjoys experimenting with her art and wants to grow in her artistic endeavors as much as possible. “I don’t like to draw the same way every time, I always want to try something new,” she said. Keep an eye out for the upcoming mural, and more of Jennie’s work in and around NCHS.
