Jisu Chae

Name: Jisu Chae

Grade: 11

Future College: ArtCenter College of Design, California

Future Career: Illustrator or Animator

Wingspan: What form of art do you do?

Chae: “I mainly do oil painting and digital art. It’s the one I like doing best.”

Wingspan: Why are you choosing to pursue a career in illustration and animation?

Chae: “Because I really like Disney movies and after I watched Frozen 2, I thought “I really want to do anything in animation as they do”. I’ve always liked art and illustration is a good way for me to draw what I want.”

Wingspan: What type of classes are you taking at school for art?

Chae: “At school right now I take Pre-AP Art 2 and next year I’m taking 3D animation and AP Drawing to better my skills and I saw a drawing class doing a self-portrait using pastels and I really want to do that too.”

Wingspan: Coming from a different country, how is the art program here different from the art program there?

Chae: “It’s so different! in Korea! If I want to learn art at school, I have to go to an art high school. In normal high schools in Korea, there aren’t any art classes so I’d have to go to a different school for that or go to an art academy. In the U.S. there are lots of classes for art to choose from. I can choose to do animation or painting, but I can’t choose in Korea.”

Wingspan: How have your parents supported your interest in art?

Chae: “My parents just support what I do. They say, ‘if you want to do it, just do it’, but in Korea, my friends’ parents hated their children doing art or any sort of other fine art because it’s hard to get a job and it costs a lot of money. But my parents are different and it’s really good for me. I like that.”

Wingspan: How does art impact your daily life?

Chae: “I use art as a way to de-stress from school and let myself relax. Art has also given me a lot of other skills like imagining things better and makeup!”

Wingspan: What are your favourite things to draw and why?

Chae: “I love drawing people because when I draw people, I find it fun to draw their different genders, ages, appearances, and facial expressions.”

Wingspan: Is there something in this field you want to get better at?

Chae: “I want to get better at drawing pictures that express space; like dimensions and from different perspectives.”