
OCSA Visual Arts Class of 2021
Alexandra Valainis
I started oil painting classes when I was eight, and it is still my favorite medium today. I like the slow-drying nature of the paint, which allows me to go back in and work on a piece for weeks, as well as its rich color quality. I also enjoy a variety of other mediums including pen and ink, watercolor, acrylic, and digital media.
Alisha Lin
After noticing my propensity for art, my parents enrolled me in art lessons at the age of three. Ecstatic as I was, my childhood took an unprecedented turn when my parents filed for divorce at the age of five. A year later, I was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, spending months at a time in the hospital for the following three years.
Christine Kim
Ever since I was born, I've lived in Koreatown, Garden Grove. I have an older sister and a younger brother. Throughout my life, I have spent countless hours dedicated to art. I was fond of making my drawings and paintings look as realistic as possible. With dedicating much time to observing and drawing intricate details, my ability to focus has enhanced, thus broadening my creative bubble.
Darlene Chen
One of the reasons I got into art is because of my grandfather. He was one of the artists that I most looked up to as a creative influence. His favorite medium was watercolor painting and therefore it’s one of the mediums I focus most on now. So, my favorite artistic mediums are watercolor painting and acrylic painting.
Eliza Devirian
I have many childhood memories of painting and drawing in the backyard with my mother's old watercolor kit. Most of these artworks were of characters that I created. Eventually I began to take classes to learn about perspective and proportions to make my artwork more realistic.
Elleyse Na
I focus my artwork to reflect past and present experiences, my personal interests, and emotions. I utilize my artistic influences and the events that are happening in my present life to create pieces that I can go back and reflect on. This allows me to be able to look back on different times in my life as well as see my technical improvements in my art.
Eloise McNamee
I was born and raised in Orange County, CA but have always loved all things dark and cold. As well as musical influences, I often draw from pop surrealism, fantasy, horror, nature and true crime, and for my more personal work I often reference my own experiences and struggles with identity, trauma, and mental illness.
Frances Huang
I started out drawing for fun as little kids do. I read western comics, watched cartoons and anime, and visited the library often with my brother. As a result, I was heavily influenced by the stories and visuals I took in. They were also probably a little mature for my age, but that also likely played a role in my fascination and curiosity for consuming artistic works.
Fuer Zuo
My life has been filled with art since I was a child. My mom’s oil paintings and my dad’s porcelain and ink paintings were the earliest memories of my childhood. I spent most of my time drawing and painting. I enjoyed every second of it, because there is no right or wrong in the world of art.
Holland Fox
I grew up with several of my great grandfather's paintings in the house, but I didn't appreciate them until my first art class in middle school. I started drawing then, but I grew to love it when I discovered watercolors. There was so much expression capable through this medium that inspired me to keep painting. It was then that I saw his paintings that I've seen a thousand times, in a new light.
Jacquelyn Lichter
I have been drawing for as long as I can remember. My family has always been my greatest supporters and they continue to encourage me and my passion for art every day. I prefer to work in oil paint, but as I was creating a supplemental college portfolio, I rediscovered my appreciation for watercolor and drawing in pencil.
Joyce Lee
I grew up in Orange County, living in the same house since birth. Ever since I was young, I was attracted to cute illustrations, cute books, and all things bright. My artwork style reflects that personality however its main subject - as of recently - is personal anecdotes and observations of the world around me whether it be darker issues in media or of the global pandemic.
Juhyun Park
With constant reminders of risk and uncertainty in the media, I found myself living more inwardly than ever. Stillness under quarantine spurred reflection in my personal outlook. As jarring as it was, the contrast between external chaos and internal stillness became an inspiration. I began to notice the subtleties of change: the vulnerability, the lonely hungering for reassurance, and the silent struggles that often go unnoticed.
Junwoo Park
Art has been by my side ever since I can remember. It's something that I used to communicate with my family. I grew up moving from country to country, so I had a hard time adjusting to the environment. I wasn't sure whether I was supposed to speak Korean or English at home. But there was one way of communicating with my family members that would break down all language barriers: it was art.
Junzhu Zhang
I began to paint and draw even before I was 3 years old. I was born in Beijing, China. I don't think my parents are like the other normal Chinese parents, because in my memory they never pushed me in studying the academic courses at my schools. Instead, we traveled to a lot of different countries in the world, approximately 20 countries so far. My mother always supports me in my fine art training, which is my most favorite thing to do after school. My parents manage the first private Rhythmic Music School in mainland China.
Justin Chen
I was originally born on the East Coast and lived in a small town in New Jersey for about 10 years. I have since been living in California for about 7 years. I have two amazing parents, my mom and my dad who were born and raised in China. Other than my parents, I have two older brothers. My brother, Josh, is at UCSB getting his master’s degree from home. My other brother, Jesse, is getting his M.B.A. from Dartmouth all the way across the country. Also, we have an amazing German Shepherd named Jordan! He is the best, of course.
Katherine Rice
Growing up, my family moved often. I was lucky enough to find something would stick with me no matter where I was, and that was my art. My sketchbook was attached to me at the hip, and by bringing that grimy, beat-up journal everywhere I went, I started to get in the groove of life-drawing. I loved to draw people: I would go through phases, where I only drew eyes for a month. And then noses, and then hands, and then ears. But OCSA opened the door for the possibilities of my pieces.
Kristiana Cruse
I was born in Orange County, California and have lived here all of my life with my wonderful father and mother. I became interested in art in first grade, where I vividly remember drawing my first successful stick figure in class. Since then, I was able to take art lessons for a couple years and then was later brought to OCSA to grow more as an artist. Throughout my time at OCSA, I was pushed to grow as an artist and develop my own personal style throughout the years.
Lars Milberger
My art consists of two-dimensional visual art as well as fashion design. I love to create portraits in proportionally realistic styles, but add exciting color schemes and backgrounds, as well as making non-representational abstract mixed media paintings to express what can't be put into words. I feel this is the same with my fashion work, in that some work is very abstract and out there, while others seem to just enhance what might be expected of a garment.
Lexy Alexandra Monet
My dad was an artist and an advertising art director, so I grew up around art. I've been drawing for as long as I can remember. Since I've been doing art my whole life, my expression has been through a ton of changes over the years.
Megan Kaura
Ever since I was young I have been fascinated with visual art. I've used just about every 2D medium available and worked in mixed media, digital, and sculptural forms as well. My 2D art generally focuses on faces and figures, with the occasional plant or animal. I mostly work in acrylic, gouache, or digital, but as of late I've absolutely loved working in metals, making rings and other jewelry pieces.
QuynhAnh Vu
In my traditional work, I try to paint what a photograph cannot emulate: a movement of life through use of color. It starts with a desire to capture a moment in all its extremes: the intensity of a blue, the reflection of lights on buildings, and the warmth of the afternoon sky. Then, by exploring the differences of mood and composition between a house on the corner of my neighborhood to the bustling streets of Santa Ana, I ask myself how can I bring the scenes before me to life by use of color, design, or texture. I am able to record the relationships between humans and nature through oils, a medium that allows me to be flexible in accordance to the ever-changing tune of our environment.
Rachael Kim
Ever since I was very young, I have always loved to travel, thanks to my parents. They allowed me to experience and learn about the different cultures, history, food, and people. But most importantly, they took me to many different art museums and historical sites such as the Louvre in Paris, La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, the Royals Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence, the Gallery of Maps in Vatican, the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican in Rome, the Museum Ludwig in Cologne, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, the Guggenheim Museum in New York, and many more.
Suofei Wang
Like most people in this school, I developed a strong interest in art since very little. I am unable to recall a single moment of my life where I found disinterest in drawing. In pursuit of artistic education, I became a part of the OCSA family at the beginning of high school (probably the most impactful decision of my life).
Svara Shah
I’ve been an artist my whole life, but over the last four years, my art has evolved from a simple application of techniques to an in-depth exploration of who I am. My early work was conventional: replicas of images I found online. I often depicted subject matter that I viewed as pretty but rarely reflected who I was.
Talia Tam
Growing up, my parents had always encouraged me to explore my interests in the arts. As a child, I dabbled in piano, gymnastics, and figure skating. After finding that they weren't to my taste, I discovered martial arts and visual arts. Now, as a soon-to-be college freshman, I find that these two hobbies have defined over half of my life.
Timari Blanke
Ever since I was a kid I’ve loved making art, and this is something my whole family’s been very supportive of. I live with my parents, my brother, my fish and my dog. My artwork is something I’ve always used as a way to experience things I otherwise wouldn’t be able to. Around 7th grade I enrolled in an after-school art class. This gave me a lot of encouragement, and technical skills that I hadn’t even realized existed before.
Trenyce Tong
I was born in Singapore, and moved to the US when I was young. In my artwork, I focus on what I'm interested in, whether its color and form, technology, or general beauty. The first art form that made me love art was manga and anime. Comics like Hunter X Hunter and Ping Pong have been the driving force of my art.
Tyler Stevenson
So far I have just kept moving forward with my dream! I will always keep trying for something better.
Vivian Kansriddle
As a kid, my family and I were always art / nature oriented, and love to go camping, to the beach, and on trips to Florida to see family. Because of this, I liked to draw nature a lot when I was younger, which translated into my art today. I primarily use oils to capture the fluidity of what I am painting, and I am influenced by the colors and movement of what I see.
Ziyao Su
I immigrated from China with my parents when I was 10. In addition to my cultures, I also stand at the intersection of my artistic, engineering, and entrepreneurial identities, so every one of my pieces is a study of perspective and balance, a journey between the extremities.