Coppell High School sophomore Melora Dominic utilizes her passion for art to escape from her day-to-day hassles. Although it was originally a box she ticked off when selecting her elective class at the end of fifth grade, for Dominic, it has turned into so much more. At last year’s Texas Association of Art Education Visual Arts Scholastic Event (VASE), Dominic qualified for the state competition hosted in San Marcos for her art piece, “Floral Photoshoot.” 

 What sparked your interest in art? 

I was really interested in the aspect of creating something out of a blank sheet of paper. It’s fun to keep [trying] different mediums and [styles]. 

How has art helped you as a high school student? 

We have a lot of studying and tests, and [art] is an escape from that. You get to put your thoughts onto paper. Other subjects have rules and theories, and you have to do what’s required. In art you have the [freedom] to create something new. 

What is your favorite medium of art?

Graphite is my favorite because it’s easy to fix your mistakes or get the right proportions.

Why is art important?

It’s a way of [expression], like how people give speeches or produce songs. Art is a way of expressing emotions or ideas. Instead of writing a story, you could set up a piece a certain way and add a subject and give them emotions, so you’re leaving the [meaning] up to interpretation. 

What goals do you have for your art class?

I want to be more experienced [and experiment] with acrylic because I’ve mainly been focused on watercolor and graphite.

What was the inspiration for your State VASE piece?

At first, [CHS9 art teacher Elsa Reynolds] gave us some materials to set up our still life, and I didn’t really know what to do. The camera was really interesting, and I thought, “Oh, I could show this from the point of view of the camera because artists [usually] capture the beauty of other stuff.” The camera captures what I see from my point of view. 

What challenges do you face as an artist?

Once you start the artwork, some of them are hard to reverse, such as paint or hard graphite. Once I put it in and if I don’t like it, it’s really annoying to go and fix it. That’s what happened with my latest piece. 

How do you turn your thoughts into artwork?

I usually do thumbnail sketches of different ways I can show the focal point or where the area of interest could be or what colors to use to implement my ideas [better]. 

What purpose do you wish to serve through art?

I mainly joined NAHS [National Art Honor Society] because a lot of times I feel like I do art just for fun, but I want to help the community [as well]. I like that art could be used to send a positive message to someone. 

 What advice would you give to aspiring artists?

Patience is key. A lot of people say practice and yes, practice is what gets you the skills, but you also have to have a lot of patience to put in the effort and finish the piece.

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