Interview with June Youth Artist Sophia Genereux

Our Main Street Youth Artist of the Month is Sophia Genereux, a 13 year old artist who has been exploring a variety of different mediums and is on a journey of further developing her already impressive creative process.

In an interview with us, Sophia talks inspiration, preparing for her opening night (on June 9th!), and what she hopes to explore next.

What first inspired you to create art?

In elementary school, I was always the "art kid". I was constantly sketching on paper or drawing comics. I always thought of myself as a decent drawer but one day I came across an artist on YouTube. Her drawings were incredible. It was just the perfect amount of sketchiness and refinement/realism and stylistic choice. That was the moment I realized I didn't have much technical skill. It bothered me that the humans I drew were stiff and awkward looking. I wanted to get better. This small goal sparked in me a drive and passion that led me here today. 

How has preparing for your opening night been so far and what have you learned in the process? 

Preparing for the opening night and learning about the process of getting ones art in an exhibit has been very eye opening. From learning about versifying subject and material matter to creating more interesting pieces, to pricing and titling etc., it has been very informative. I am grateful for this opportunity so I can learn things about the process and perhaps be able to apply this knowledge later on.

What ideas, techniques, and mediums do you hope to continue to develop and/or what do you hope to explore next?

I would like to develop my watercolor, alcohol marker, and digital art skills. It's important to have experience in a variety of mediums and also draw all different kinds of subject matter. I would like to use watercolor more often because it has a sort of elegance and fluidity that some mediums can't capture. The way the paint or water moves can't necessarily be controlled which is part of the beauty of it. I would also like to develop my alcohol marker and digital art to color and render more realistically, and just get more comfortable with the medium in general.