Student Guest Blog: Art is Today!

by Lauren Hathaway, 2009 High School graduate, Wisconsin

Hello Hello, this is my very first blog. I feel like blogs are conversations in type format. So excuse me if I’m using too much voice. My English teachers always said that I used to much voice, though I just think any piece of writing without voice is just dull and boring, but that is just my opinion.

My name is Lauren Hathaway and I am a soon to be graduate of Oshkosh West. Thank God that I am out of there. You know your getting old when following the rules is like sticking a toothpick in your eye. “Can I go to the bathroom?” “Write yourself a pass, and then I will sign it,” “ugh, here’s my pass,” “can you please go back and write the date, which bathroom you are going to, what stall your going to use, what sink your going to rinse off in, and don’t forget to document the hallways you are using and whoever else you interact with along the way, then report back to me.”
Honestly I am 18 years old and I’m getting hunted down each day I walk in the hallways to see if I have a stupid pass. I’m sorry I am rambling. I could literally write a book about my adventures in that 1000 year old school.

That’s not why Pen & Publish invited me here to kick off this student penned blog. I started a magazine called ARTISTODAY. Now you are probably wondering, what does that mean? Well, if you break it up it stands for ART IS TODAY, or ARTIST TODAY. You see? I know, creative, right. It’s a student driven magazine where we interview different people of the arts in all the classes that Oshkosh West has to offer. All the way from band to metals, we cover everything. Which means interviews, pictures of there work, and then the actual production.

You know when you pick up a new electronic, and you really have no idea what it is or what it’s capable of doing. Well that was me with Adobe InDesign. I never touched the program before, though that is what I had to use to put the magazine together. I figured it out like I was a pro, not to brag or anything though, it was like wow, I get this, which rarely happens in my world.

Now you’re probably thinking, "so what an art magazine, who cares?" Well for me it was a big step. I am not very book smart at all and continually find myself with a camera or a paintbrush in my hand. I get inspired by anything, it’s amazing and I love it. I also love leading and directing people. So my tutor told me last year that I should do an art newsletter. Though me being so ambitious and all, I just decided to do a full out magazine. And three issues later I managed to spread the word about Oshkosh West artist and their many talents. The most enjoyable thing about this experience was all the different artists I got to meet and become friends with. It’s amazing what can happen when you try something new and release that potential.

I know I know, this is a very long starter blog, but I just want you guys to get a feel for my personality and who I am, and what I have accomplished. I would like to end with a piece of advice: never be afraid to try something new, because regret is something you can’t undo.