Written by Kylie Nash, TAG Intern Spring 2021

In 2019, I moved from Lubbock, Texas to Austin and not long after began taking classes at Austin Community College. I studied other subjects in college before, but nothing really gave me a feeling of belonging. I always knew I wanted to do something in the arts, but I didn’t quite yet know exactly what I wanted to do. I dabbled in a variety of art classes to see what would pique my interest, and my favorite class ended up being painting at ACC. There is just something about having complete control over my colors, paint application, my brushstrokes, and the subject matter when I’m painting.

During my time exploring painting at ACC, I took the Academic Cooperative internship class. As a part of the coursework, I was assigned to create ten artworks using my preferred medium – so of course I chose paint. At the time, I was at the tip of the iceberg because I was just learning how to manipulate oil paint and was not yet aware of the many different possibilities paint holds. While I had all semester to create ten paintings, I was also working at The Art Galleries at ACC. Note, this was Spring 2021 so it was during the COVID-19 pandemic which means everything – courses, exhibitions, and programs – was online. My job at the galleries was promoting the artworks in the permanent collection via social media. As I began writing promotional copy, I noticed that this can be tricky because you want to describe the artist’s work without putting words in their mouth. Through tasks like this, I learned a lot and made connections that will last a lifetime. At the end of that semester in May 2021, I officially earned my Associate of Arts in Studio Art and began to move on to the next step in my career.

In Fall 2021, I was accepted into Texas State University’s art program and started working on my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. At this time, I officially declared myself as a painting major. The additional requirements for me to graduate with this degree include seven levels of painting, art elective classes, and art history courses. Unfortunately, looking back, I realized I never applied myself fully in school until I discovered my love for art. Now, I am on track to graduate December 2023. As I’m working towards this goal, my days are long and full of hard work. My day usually starts at 5:00am and lasts until 7:00 pm. I am at school all day during the week painting, and I work two part-time jobs. If by chance I have an ‘empty’ day, I end up in the studio working on paintings. To me, this is a great way to spend my free time. Someone once said to me, “If you don’t take yourself seriously then how do you expect others to take you seriously?” and that resonated with me. When I was in the lower-level classes I was always inspired by upper-level students and how hard they worked. I knew from that feeling that is what I wanted to be. After my BFA, I am planning on continuing my education by attending graduate school to earn a  Master of Fine Arts. 

Since leaving ACC, I have been fortunate to have my paintings on display in numerous art galleries such as The Art Galleries at Austin Community College, B-Space Art House and Not For You Gallery. This shows that if you apply yourself then great things will happen to you. I would not be where I am today if I did not start at Austin Community College. It is amazing to look back to see the first initial spark from that first painting class. The art programs offered at both ACC and Texas State have given me that feeling of finally knowing this is what I am supposed to be doing. Everyone has their own timeline in life, so take your time to make sure you find where you belong.

Make Your Own Sandwich, 2022, oil on canvas, 48 x 30 in. 2022 Juried Student Art Exhibition, The Art Galleries at ACC

This painting is extra special to me. Two weeks after I started art school, I found out my grandpa passed away. I was gone for a while and when I came back I did not have time to finish this painting so I moved on. Originally, there was an entirely different painting under Make Your Own Sandwich. When I circled back to it I decided to take it in another direction, so I started over by doing a solid yellow oil coat. I then came up with this current painting. This was the first painting of mine to ever hang in an art gallery and then it got to be part of Austin Studio Tours at The Art Galleries at Austin Community College. Although it has nothing to do specifically with my grandpa, I’d like to think it was him that helped me get this painting into art galleries. I have always been taught if you want something done then do it yourself. That is where I got the “Make Your Own Sandwich” saying from.