Mixed colors, scattered brushes, and crumbles of papers filled the studio. He picks up a thin paint brush, dips it in the teal colored paint, and slowly adds the finishing detail to his piece.

A smile smears across his face as Coppell High School senior Chulmin Han finishes his first college art piece.

Han has had a big heart for art since he was little. Although he had once lost his motivation, he came back with an even greater drive to continue with it as a career.

“I’ve always liked art and growing up, it’s always been a part of who I was,” Han said. “But when I moved to Texas [from Ohio], I felt like everyone else was better than me so I kind of just stopped for a while. I found my motivation again when I started coming to Top Art Studio and for the longest time, it was really grueling, but I’m realizing that I’m doing what I love, so I want to pursue it.”

His unique artistic passion has had a large influence on those around him, including his brother, Coppell High School sophomore Jeemin Han.

“A lot of people don’t enjoy art, but he really loves what he does and he just has that drive to work harder than anyone else,” Jeemin said. “I see how proud he makes my dad and it really inspires me to be different and try harder in whatever I do.”

Each day, Chulmin spends more than five hours in the art studio working on his college application pieces. His art teacher, Grace Kim, took notice in his talent and has high hopes and expectations for his future.

“Chulmin can do details really well or better than most students and he has the ability to see objects in a very precise, delicate kind of way,” Kim said. “We have to create 20 pieces to complete his college application but he’s doing very well and I just continue being impressed by him everyday. I really hope he continues to pursue his artistic passion.”

In addition to his art teacher, his father, Jae Han, has been a big supporter of Chulmin.

“My dad was an artist and it’s honestly amazing to see how much talent has passed through to Chulmin,” Mr. Han said. “I hope to lay down a playground for him so that he can pursue whatever he likes to do and I don’t want any kind of stumbling block to stop him from pursuing his dream. It doesn’t really matter if he succeeds or not as long as he does what he really enjoys to do.”

His family and friends around him have recognized Chulmin’s uniqueness and looks forward to seeing him create more artwork that is different from the rest of the world.

“In the future, he’s not really going to follow what the rest of the world is doing but instead, he’ll create something that will give back to the world,” Jeemin said. “I really look forward to what he’s going to create. It’s going to be different and something that we won’t be able to comprehend and I think he’s really going to be set apart from everyone else.”

Unlike many artists, Chulmin has looked beyond monetary values of art and found a unique goal he hopes to achieve through his art career.

“As a person or artist in general, I have no ambitions,” Chulmin said. “I don’t care about money and I don’t care about fame; they just don’t really appeal to me because I don’t think these things have much meaning. But a huge part of why I want to pursue art is because I am a Christian. I want to glorify God with the art I create. I want to convey His love and grace and be more out there to show people that this is who I am. This is me.”

As he finishes up his pieces and continues forward with his career, Chulmin hopes and looks forward to revealing a different perspective on art for the rest of the world.

“Sometimes when you see artistic pieces, you can really feel the emotions and thoughts of the artist,” Chulmin said. “What I want to do is beyond expressing my own emotions that I felt when I was growing up. I want to convey the feelings of love and grace that I felt through my art. I don’t know exactly how I am going to do that, but that’s something I can definitely look forward to in the future.”