This blog post introduces how students preparing for the Art and Cultural Welfare major can effectively convey their artistic experiences and reflections on welfare in their Statement of Purpose.
Writing About Academic Experience and Reflections
“Overcoming Stagnant Practical Skills Through Perseverance”
While studying practical skills, there comes a moment when you start feeling like your drawing ability has plateaued. That’s when anxiety sets in. Thoughts like, ‘Is this really the limit of my skill?’ start circling in your head, confidence gradually wanes, and a wave of gloom washes over you. Naturally, you hesitate even to pick up a pencil or brush, and your passion for practical studies fades. I too have experienced such a plateau. It felt like my drawing wasn’t improving at all, and even as I worked day after day, I was consumed by the thought, ‘Is this really meaningful?’ My hand grew heavy when holding the pencil, and I even became afraid to face the drawing paper.
But I didn’t want to give up. With entrance exams looming, I couldn’t afford to stay stuck in despair. I knew I had to push through this stagnation somehow. After much thought, the conclusion I reached was simple yet clear: “There is no royal road to drawing; ultimately, the only answer is to keep moving your hand steadily.” My drawing skills didn’t suddenly surge from genius; they were the result of years of consistent drawing and study since childhood. So, even when I hit a plateau where my skills wouldn’t improve, I came to believe that if I just kept moving forward steadily in my own way, I could overcome it again.
So even when I truly didn’t want to pick up a brush, I’d sit down at my desk, telling myself, “Just sit down for now,” or “At least hold a pencil in your hand.” I let go of the pressure to draw well and started moving my hand, looking at the canvas with the thought, “Let’s just draw something.” Rather than striving for perfection, I focused on drawing just as much as I could manage in that moment. These consistent attempts gradually became the path to breaking through the creative block.
I also made an effort to seek new stimuli and inspiration through activities like visiting exhibitions, museums, and watching films, rather than just drawing aimlessly. When my mind filled with fresh images and emotions, that inspiration became the driving force to paint again, naturally helping me overcome the slump. Ultimately, I realized the truth that ‘consistency always pays off.’ And what was even more precious was that this wasn’t just a simple saying, but a genuine conviction gained through my own experience.
Similar plateaus will surely come again in the future, but I now know this: by steadily moving my hands, refusing to give up, and occasionally pausing to recharge my inspiration, I can overcome any creative block. The belief that ‘with perseverance and the will to overcome, nothing is impossible’ has become my greatest confidence. I am certain this mindset will serve as a solid foundation for my future artistic journey.
What I Learned Through Art Club Activities
“Drawing caricatures during the festival”
One of the most memorable moments during my art club activities was running a caricature booth during the festival. As we pondered, ‘What should we do?’ ahead of the festival, the idea emerged to open a caricature booth where we could draw our friends’ faces in a unique style. The idea was to utilize our talents to build our skills and earn a little money to buy art supplies. We decided to use all the proceeds to purchase tools needed for our art studies, so we prepared necessary materials like pencils and quick-drying paints.
Caricature is the art of quickly capturing a person’s distinctive features and expressing them with unique lines and brushwork. Since we had to observe a person’s appearance within a short time and identify their most prominent features, we needed to develop not only quick sketching skills but also observation and expressive abilities. It was a meaningful opportunity to simultaneously train our ‘eye for observing objects’, ‘eye for capturing features’, and ‘hand for quick expression’.
Word spread that “you could get your own portrait for just a thousand won,” drawing far more friends to our booth than expected. Thanks to this, the art club booth buzzed with energy. Our hands grew busier drawing, and our skills naturally solidified. Quickly grasping friends’ personalities and expressing them in a humorous and affectionate way brought me great joy and a sense of accomplishment. Even friends from other booths were amazed by our speed and expressiveness, and seeing their reactions made me want to draw even harder. Drawing caricatures for so many friends also brought in more revenue than expected, allowing us to purchase tools the art club needed but had hesitated to buy due to cost.
“Preparing for the End-of-Semester Art Exhibition”
Our art club holds an exhibition at the end of every semester to display the works created throughout the term. I, too, have participated in these exhibitions each semester by submitting my drawings. Honestly, without the exhibition, I might have sometimes rushed through my work or failed to meet my target number of drawings. But having the clear goal of the exhibition always pushed me to complete my paintings, and through that process, my skills steadily improved. The thought that my friends would see my work naturally instilled a sense of responsibility, and the desire to create better pieces took precedence.
Preparing for the exhibition didn’t end with just painting the works. Once a painting was finished, there was also time to explain the piece to friends. This process led me to realize that ‘a painting needs a story too.’ This realization—that every painting should contain my own meaning or message—greatly influenced my approach. While I often had to paint predetermined subjects within the framework of entrance exam art, I still strove to infuse my own personality and narrative within those constraints. Ultimately, painting works that carry my distinct style became my most important goal.
I intend to approach my future art studies with this same mindset. I aspire to become an artist who imbues each painting with a story and a sense of responsibility, not merely accumulating technical skill. With pride as a student majoring in Art and Cultural Welfare, I am determined to complete my path to the very end.
Examples of Consideration, Sharing, and Cooperation and My Reflections
“The Change with a Troublesome Friend”
In our art club, there was a friend who didn’t easily accept adults’ words and acted on their own whims. They were so unresponsive that even teachers gave up on them. They spent more time outside school than participating in class or drawing, so they were often labeled a ‘problem child’. However, I had known this friend since elementary school, so I always believed they couldn’t be judged solely by their outward appearance. I knew he was originally a warm-hearted and gentle child, but he gradually changed due to family hardships and various emotional events, leading him to become who he was now.
One day, I mustered the courage to have a serious conversation with him. Surprisingly, he opened up honestly about his situation, explaining he wasn’t causing trouble on purpose. He said he had no adult who truly listened to his story, and not knowing how to handle the deep-seated anxiety and frustration within him had led him to feel lost. Hearing this, I sensed that this friend was actually desperately seeking someone’s help. So, I decided to start with the small actions I could take. First, I focused on listening to his story and showing empathy. As I sincerely listened to their unfiltered, honest words, they gradually began to trust me and open up about their innermost feelings. As our conversations accumulated, they started sorting through their emotions, and their anxious demeanor gradually diminished.
When I sensed they had regained some emotional stability, I acted as a bridge, introducing them to my own friends so they could socialize together. At first, it felt awkward, but gradually, my friend started blending in naturally with the others and stopped exhibiting the deviant behavior seen before. Throughout this process, I made a conscious effort to maintain an attitude of understanding and consideration toward my friend’s perspective, rather than unilaterally pointing out or judging with statements like “You shouldn’t do this” or “You shouldn’t do that.” By taking time and guiding gradual change, my friend visibly transformed in a positive direction. Now, he’s diligently studying to pursue his dream of attending college.
Through this experience, I deeply realized that the most crucial virtues in dealing with people are ‘patience,’ ‘consideration,‘ and ’empathy.’ I learned that instead of easily judging someone based only on their outward appearance, it’s necessary to make an effort to understand their true feelings through conversation. Moving forward, when interacting with people, I will strive to remember to approach them with sincerity, opening my heart and listening attentively before speaking. This experience clearly showed me that relationships deepen with time spent together, and within that depth, both parties can grow.
