Junior Ashley Ratcliff is one of the many artists on the Bonita Vista High (BVH) campus. Ratcliff has been drawing since her childhood, but more consistently for around ten years. Experimenting with different art mediums such as painting, pencil sketches and recently digital art. She expressed that her art presents an animated “cutesy” style through the use of various colors aiming to spread positivity and create joy for others. 

Q: How did you get into drawing? 

A: I remember being younger and it was something most little kids do for fun. And I don’t remember this part but my mom always told me that around the house I would draw little stars. [At first] she thought it was my cousin doing it because she thought it looked too nice for a three year old to be doing. But then she caught me one day drawing at a little desk I had at home and realized it was me leaving [drawn stars] around the house. 

Q: How often are you able to draw? 

A: I try to draw little things any chance I get. Usually in class I’ll draw little sketches on the side of my paper, especially in my book for English. [Also], every Friday I try to draw in my planner [which is] very therapeutic. [In my planner], I draw out space I’ll need for writing down homework and things I need to do each day. Then, with whatever theme is going on that week or month, I draw [something] correlating with it. 

Q: Why do you pursue art? 

A: I pursue art because it doesn’t feel stressful. At times it gets tiring trying to figure out new ideas or maybe someone wants you to make something for them and you don’t exactly know how to do what they want. But at the end of the day, it is still fun trying to create something that someone will enjoy. 

Q: How are you supported within your artwork? 

A: Usually when I draw something I am excited to show my parents and they always encourage me to try doing more. For example, I had painted my shoes because they were getting old and it [turned out to] look really cool, so I showed my parents and they thought it was really neat and asked if I could do it for them. Then [later] my friend asked if I could do it for their shoes. 

Q: What is one of your favorite pieces and why? 

A: I think a painting I really like that I did was a pair of shoes that I painted for my dad because I have a pretty good bond with my dad and he is one of my role models in life. He had asked me to make him these Harry Potter style shoes and it was my goal to make it look really good. So, I thought it would be good to paint out the Hogwarts school which I feel is one of the coolest things I have drawn. 

Q: How do you personally improve upon your skills? 

A: A lot of practice, because I remember there were artists I would see online and I thought their styles were really good and [I] tried to copy it. But there comes a point where you can’t just copy what they do, so you have to make it your own. [The art piece becomes your own through] the style that you draw with, like the eye shape you make your characters or how you draw their figure. Just lots of practice is key.

Q: What techniques do you employ in your art? 

A: When I paint, I’m actually pretty limited on supplies. So most of the time I use acrylic paint. If I don’t have a certain color I’m looking for though, I’ll sometimes take pastels or eyeshadow and mix it with paint to give me another color I’m looking for. It can be difficult, though, to use just acrylic paint because depending on how much [paint I use] or how thick the paint is, it dries very quickly. And once the paint dries it becomes harder to blend colors. I also do a lot of pencil drawings which I enjoy a lot. I usually just use a regular wooden pencil that you would use for school and an eraser. These [are] the basics I use for creating a rough sketch. Once I feel like it’s complete, I outline with a black pen. Since I’ve been trying digital art, I actually can take these rough sketches that have been out and redraw them online.

Q: What does your artwork mean to you? 

A: [Art] to me is a freedom of expression because depending on how I feel it ties into what the drawing means. There was a picture I remember that I had drawn when my grandma had passed and I remember being so mad that day and I didn’t want it to be true. So I went up to my room and locked the door and started drawing for a really long time. Within that time it helped me express how I was feeling about it. Drawing really helps you express feelings that you can’t put into words. 

Q: What is your overall goal with your artwork? 

A: It’s always been my goal [to] one day be an animator at Disney. I was actually talking to someone about it recently and they were asking what I wanted to do in the future and I remembered that when I was little I always wanted to be an artist. As I thought about it more, I thought it would be so cool to draw or create the next big Disney character or next favorite cartoon someone watches.