For most students, the looming event of high school graduation can be daunting, especially when they are constantly asked the age-old question, “What are you going to do after you graduate?” For one member of the Queen Margaret’s School Class of 2017, her answer is completely unexpected from what her answer would have been three years ago.
Originally from Seoul, South Korea, Jimin Lee has attended QMS since 2014. She confesses that before arriving in Canada, she promised her parents she would never study art. Although her father is an accomplished architect and her brother is studying interior design, Jimin had never been attracted to the studio. “All that changed when I arrived at QMS and toured the Advanced Placement (AP) Studio Art creative space,” says a smiling Jimin. “I was hooked. So Mrs. Andersen encouraged me to try different materials, explore mediums, colours, textures and styles. I really wanted to learn as much as I could.”
Fine Arts Department Head, Angela Andersen shares that Jimin was very unsure of herself and her art when she started at QMS, but a passion for the craft was clear. “She always sought feedback from myself and her peers,” explains Andersen. “Receiving constructive feedback on art can be hard, yet she now knows how to engage in the creative process and loves it. Jimin has developed a strong voice through art and I’m positive she will continue to grow, push boundaries and evolve.”
With an impressive portfolio that includes artwork which crosses several mediums, Lee has already gained local recognition. Two of her first portraits hang in the DBIA community mural at the Duncan Garage, and her self-portrait “Reflection” was chosen for the recent CVAC studentWorks Exhibition where a local collector purchased it on the spot. It is an exciting start for this budding artist, who plans to continue her artistic pursuits at Western University this September.
Inspired by the portraits of Frida Kahlo and pop-art of Andy Warhol, Jimin knows that life could alter her path again and again, yet she is prepared to bend with the wind as she discovers new aspects of her artistic voice.
