Today we’d like to introduce you to Jalyn Nwogu
Hi Jalyn, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I am currently a Graphics Artists working in the news in Manhattan, New York. I am originally from Irving, Texas. I studied fine arts all throughout my high school experience and switched to Computer Animation in college. I still continued my work in the fine arts, but I also learned so much about the technological side of art that included photography, video editing, graphic design, 3D animation, 3D sculpting, compositing, and photo manipulation. I feel as though art is such a core part of who I am as I’ve spent over 12 years taking in all that is art. I have gone through many ups and downs in my art journey, but I feel that every artist should be allowed to go through that as art is never liner and is never set in stone. The beauty of art is the person who is creating it and how their life experiences has allowed them breathe life into their work. There have been times that I didn’t do art for some years, but that does not define me. I am forever an artist.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I feel that my art journey has had many ups and downs throughout the years. I feel that the 2020 pandemic really put me in a sad place as an artist. I felt so burnt out from 8 years learning and adapting and absorbing. It felt as if I had used every part of myself to accomplish an assignment, to please critics, to have the highest grades in the room to the point I had nothing else to give. Everything that I felt that made me an artist came into question. I wasn’t creating any art, I had no new ideas, I felt as if I had absolutely nothing in me to create. The world around me was silent as we were all meant to keep inside the house and minimize connections to other people. Those lack of connections, the loss of discovering new things was hard and I felt that if I couldn’t discover, how could I be an artist?
I gained some traction by becoming a freelance artist, but that yet again felt like I was completing an assignment for others. My ideas weren’t mine and I didn’t have much say on what I could do. It felt as if I was back again doing my art to please the critics and so I stopped. It wasn’t for me. As the years trekked on, my career has become my focus than my personal art. The yearning for creating felt minute. I tired to create digital again, but it all felt too overwhelming as my knowledge of so many programs became a problem. It felt as I knew too much about different art mediums and I just couldn’t chose. I started drawing by hand again and that has made me the most happy. There is no undo key, a blur brush, or a render time. There was no pressure to know every hotkey and trick to get the perfect image. Returning to my roots has brought that glimmer of hope that I thought was missing. I did not have to please anyone. I just had to draw for me
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a Graphics Artist working for a local news station in Manhattan. New York. I work on creating headlines, specialized graphics, graphs and polls and making promotions for guests and special event.Working in news is definitely different from working in 3D animation and fine arts. It is a lot more fast paced and information heavy. I find working here to be an escape from the rigorous work I’ve done in college. The expectations are high, but they are different. The pressure is not the same. The constant need to please, the long work hours, the never ending criticism, the need to be the best artist in the room, the cramping hands from drawing for hours and hitting all the right hot keys is worlds apart from what I do now. I really enjoy my job and it lets me have a peek into the political world which I am also very much interested in. This job has really pushed me to have a better work ethic and has allowed me to communicate certain ideas to people who are not in the graphics department. My willingness to continue to grow and learn really sets me a part. The ability to create without being tethered to this idea that I need to have all my art relate to who I am as an artist, has allowed me to breathe and slow down. Although I am not doing the same exact thing I was dong before, I am able to grow as an artist in ways that I didn’t think I could. I feel a lot more focused and able to see the details through the big picture. I feel that I am truly in a league of my own at this point of my life.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success is never linear and it takes time. It always comes when it’s the right moment. The people you meet in your life will recognize your success, you don’t need the whole world to know what you have accomplished to be successful. Success can be waking up on time everyday, it can be remembering to kiss your mom every morning, it can be making time with your loved ones every chance you get. It’s a personal goal that you create and achieve. No one has a hold on to what you can achieve. Your success is what you make of it, it is not tied to anyone else but you. You will have to fail many, many times to accomplish your goals and that’s okay. I had such a hard time accepting failure as I felt that I needed to be absolutely perfect. I created my unachievable expectations and was constantly disappointing myself because I didn’t reach them. I had to is not perfection, it doesn’t please everyone around you. All you need to do to be successful is continue to be you, do your absolutely best even when you fall, and truly believe in yourself.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://jalynnwogu.com
- Instagram: @jalynnwogu
