My name is Hannah. During my time at Freestyle, I was a student and an artist. I loved cats and the color pink. I liked to do digital art as well as trying out new crafts. I played trumpet in marching band and my favorite class was probably math.
In life, I always try my hardest to be helpful. For me, being helpful is the easiest way to feel good about myself. Knowing that people are grateful for me makes me feel a lot more confident about myself. I would also consider myself as somebody curious. I find it satisfying to know not just what, by why, and how. I’m always asking questions, and trying to learn more. Finally, I consider myself to be creative. I think in terms of problem solving, creativity is my greatest strength. I often find myself trying to think of new and creative ways to solve problems.
Outside of school, I had a lot of hobbies. In my Junior and Senior year, I was in marching band, and I really enjoyed the community I found in it, as well as the new opportunities I had to push myself and learn new skills. I also like to draw, usually digitally. To relax, I like to play video games. For many years, I’ve also been doing cat sitting. It’s pretty relaxing and a nice way to make some money. It’s also very enjoyable, since I get to meet a lot of cats. A few other things I’ve been interested in would be mechanical keyboards and collecting figures.
At Freestyle, I hoped to learn a wide variety of new skills that would help me in life. I though that I would be able to get a good grasp on lots of new programs. Artistically, I hoped my design class would give me a good understanding of many aspects of design that I could apply to both school and personal projects. Another thing I hoped to get better at was collaboration. I’d struggled with working in groups many times in the past, so I hoped freestyle would give me opportunities to get better at working with others, especially in creative settings.
I really valued how Freestyle allowed me to be myself and be creative in the way I wanted to be. Many of the projects allowed me to create things that felt my own, and I got a lot of freedom in terms of what I submitted. I also felt like the freestyle environment encouraged me to be myself, and I felt really supported by both my peers and my teachers. I also really appreciated the revision system that allowed me to keep improving on my projects. The ability to improve both my grade and product made me really motivated to push myself and keep doing better as an artist.
Portfolio
I think that my product label and magazine ad are some of my best Design class productions. I think I was able to give them a very professional finish and the final product looks very similar to what I was aiming for. During this process, I also had a moment where I went back and heavily revised part of the design, which was a big learning moment for me.
I am, of course, also very proud of my final Zenith production. Unlike many other Freestyle projects, it was completely independent, and allowed me to explore design in whichever way I wanted. I am very happy that I got the opportunity to learn sewing for this project, and am excited to expand on that skill in the future.
Finally, I am choosing to display my worldbuilding movie poster. I think I gave it a nice, professional finish, and I got to use a lot of my favorite Photoshop tools and effects in the process. I’ve been using Photoshop for many years before Freestyle, and this production definitely feels like a strong implementation of everything i’ve learned to do with the program.
Freestyle Reflection
Freestyle has truly been one of the most incredible experiences of my life and I can’t even imagine how different my life would be right now without it. Freestyle has granted me a truly fulfilling high school experience and has allowed me to gain so much confidence, both creatively and socially. I don’t think it will ever be possible for me to forget the friendships I made at Freestyle, and I will be lucky to carry the great technical skills I gained throughout life.
My advice for incoming Freestyle seniors: Have fun, make the most of it, and don’t be afraid to try new things!