Within a few years, the next pivotal moment in my life occurred when I immigrated to the United States alongside my family in 2010. I was a young teen and several parts of my life as well as my character (as an artist) would drastically change inward and outwards. I had to readjust to a new culture, make new friendships, close a few chapters, and adapt to a new environment. For me this was a unique time in which I went through an abrupt change of interests that quietly made me place my passion of drawing into an “old memories box”.

By the time I got to high school, my creative obsessions had multiplied. Drawing was still part of me, but now I was chasing new sparks—film, video production, photography, editing. I became fascinated with the act of capturing still moments as they unfolded such as cold winter sunsets shedding light into the horizon, friends doing everyday ‘mundane’ tasks, and the quiet in-between spaces that I’ve been fascinated with the exposure to nature. It’s sort of magical, like when I acquired my first photography camera, it felt like a new set of eyes—I was seeing the world differently, and I couldn’t stop clicking.

However, the same thing occured to me when I threw myself into other creative endevours that caught my attention: school projects, experimental short films, and even stepping in front of the camera when needed. I was eager to try it all. But the more I explored, the more tangled things became. I loved too many things at once, and instead of clarity, I hit a creative wall during this time. I couldn’t figure out which direction to follow and more importantly, I was constantly asking myself: What do I want to make? What do I want to do?

Eventually, I found myself circling back to something I’d quietly set aside for a long time—those early drawings, the spark that first pulled me into being a creative person; that box of old memories, of course! full of characters and sketchbooks, it needed to be back.

Finally, in 2018, I enrolled at Maine College of Art, and things started to click into place. It felt like a homecoming or in other words, it like I was finally in a space where I could explore all the different parts of myself without having to choose just one. I dove into new mediums, studied fine art, and started stitching together all the pieces of my creative journey into something that finally felt whole.

So to that brings me to the most recent chapter in my life. I’m still here, still reaching for that spark, still obsessed with what can happen when you face a blank page and give it life. Sure, it took a long trajectory for me get the larger picture. Moreover, recognize all the creative obsessions that I’d been chasing—drawing, film, photography, storytelling— complete and piece together the collage of my creative identity.