Welcome to the first of many BYAAC Public Service Art Announcements! Beginning our P.S.A.As, we will be introducing you all to the youth behind the advocacy work BYAAC will work on & participate in throughout the year. With each chance to meet our council comes a chance to read some of their work on art advocacy. Below each intro is some of the council member’s words & potential art speaking on arts advocacy & we invite you to take a read!
Our first council member we would like you to meet is Carrie Snowden! Carrie is a Senior (12th grade) at Baltimore Design School. As a passionate graphic designer, she is a strong advocate for the arts and is driven to add her own perspective on the world of graphic design and art as a whole!
Career Pathways in the Arts: What needs to change?
Art has saved me countless times throughout my youth, whether from boredom or my demons. It allowed me to create a world filled with dreams and peace. When I was younger, I used art to express my struggles because I couldn’t speak my feelings outwardly. I didn’t believe my art could take me anywhere because I never saw or heard success stories. I didn’t want to be the stereotypical struggling artist.
On career days, I never saw artists or creative pioneers, only workers in STEM or government. During high school choice, this led me to put Dunbar as my top choice because I saw the medical field as a guaranteed success. I did not believe art could be a good career. I applied to Baltimore Design School anyway not knowing it would take away my acceptance to Dunbar. It was the best accident that ever happened to me. In my graphic design pathway, I felt confident for the first time in my work and saw success in my future. I finally saw the arts as a career pathway for me and my peers.
I want to reiterate, being in a school where the arts are a PRIORITY helped me plan for my future. Introducing art to kids early can hush their doubts. There are plenty of kids like me who love art but can not imagine a monetary future in the arts. Baltimore Design School showed me how to become an artist with a dream. I believe in my future in graphic design because the field has never had a Carrie Snowden. We need art in our society and we need to change the fruitless career views held by many parents, school leaders, and other adults in our communities. So let the arts be uplifted instead of being overlooked and under-appreciated.
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