Maiah Deogracias, a freshman communication and art double main, is a skilled photographer and electronic designer.
Deogracias, who also is effective as a photographer for The Torch, turned passionate about art at a young age.
“I had usually been interested in it ever because I was tiny. I experienced a very little Fisher Price digital camera that I brought everywhere you go with me, and then I took my very first photo workshop when I was in middle faculty,” stated Deogracias.
An avid traveler, Deogracias enjoys to capture distinctive environments, specially landscapes and street pictures.
“I have a single piece that I took in Chinatown in Chicago, and it was a reflection shot of a cafe. It can be actually exciting due to the fact you can see each the outside the house and the within, but it really is really distorted and warped from the glass. Which is 1 of my beloved shots mainly because you can see like a distorted trash can, but you can also see truly extravagant, exciting lighting and the booths inside the restaurant, so it truly is just an appealing juxtaposition,” Deogracias stated.
Deogracias usually receives inspiration by finding out earlier artists who have similar models to hers.
“I do my research on what prior artists that specially have identical passions that I do. I actually look up to Duane Michals, who did a whole lot of very similar stylistic items that I do, like pairing texts with his pictures. And then, just a lot of portrait photographers. Annie Leibovitz is very, quite superior at what she does as well,” Deogracias stated.
When undertaking portraits, Deogracias attempts to concentrate on human interaction and emotion. “I consider that individually, from my practical experience, I have been seriously drawn to do the job that focuses on human interaction. I like operates that make you really feel emotional, like they make you sense a thing by seeking at it,” Deogracias mentioned.
At Valpo, Deogracias’s get the job done can be witnessed as a result of her electronic task “The Individuals are the Place” which she submitted for the Library’s CCLIR Get in touch with for Entry for the Library’s Long lasting Assortment.
“I centered it all around how COVID has influenced journey, given that it was these kinds of an significant part of my daily life. And I talked about how all through quarantine, I needed nothing at all a lot more than to go out and journey sites, but I understood, even if I was equipped to go, I wouldn’t get the possibility to expertise everything mainly because everyone’s trapped inside in the course of quarantine,” Deogracias said.
Just after graduating from Valpo, Deogracias hopes to continue on art, irrespective of whether as a career or passion.
“I’m not absolutely sure nevertheless which occupation or which major I’ll have my task more oriented in the direction of, but my desire position would be an artwork director at a journal mainly because you have people publishing and print elements, and also the artwork part. And you have entry to do shoots and things like that. But I consider general, I just hope to keep on doing artwork in basic, regardless of my occupation, and proceed to submit for phone calls for entries and points like that,” Deogracias reported.
Deogracias also gave advice for all those commencing out in artwork.
“My photo teacher, she always utilized to say, ‘Just do it for the shot.’ So I assume just not becoming concerned to consider new things and experiment. Even if it won’t go the way you believed it would, you may both come out with a image you were not expecting or you can expect to know how to strengthen in the long term,” Deogracias stated, “So I assume just photographing regularly, or if that’s not your medium, just experimenting in normal, will eventually make you a far better artist.”
To see extra of Deogracias’s photography, check out her Instagram account @__m.k.d.images.__.
If you would like to nominate an individual for an Artist Spotlight function in The Torch, you should electronic mail [email protected].