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Emily King says creating small stickers helps her progress her artistic abilities

Emily King's stickers can be put on water bottles, laptops, notebooks, and more.

Having been drawn to art from a young age, Emily King, a junior from Utah studying painting, said she’s been able to share her art by creating small artistic stickers. Having followed some advice from online, King said starting small has encouraged her to keep fulfilling her desire to create.

Studying art in college felt like a natural choice, according to King. “I’ve always felt a need to create and share my thoughts and emotions through art. Recently, I’ve been wanting to share more of my art but did not know exactly where to begin.”

King reached out to one of her favorite artists, Bree Poort, on Instagram, and was given the advice to “start small”.

“That’s when it clicked, I could start by creating a small product that would show people what my art is all about. That’s when I decided to start turning my artwork into stickers”.

Stickers, said King, are a great way of displaying her art because they’re small, practical, and fun. People can stick them on their water bottles, laptops, notebooks or just about anything.

Most of King’s designs, she said, start as a doodle in a notebook or on a napkin. “I’m a constant doodler. Always have been. But it’s there in my doodles, or seemingly meaningless drawings, that I pull certain elements and motifs, refine them, and end up creating the final product”.

Before she was a student at BYU–Hawaii, King shared, “Art was just something I had a natural talent for and did for fun. Now I better understand the principles of art and can do things with a lot more intention. Having a professor to guide me and specific assignments in class really pushes me to do my best.”

As a child taking painting classes, King’s parents tried to encourage her to pursue painting only as a hobby, not as part of her education or future career. “I came to the point where I just had to follow my heart, study art, and work hard enough to prove that it would be worth it.”

Now, King said her parents are happy with the way she has utilized her time and talents and they encourage her to continue creating and sharing her art.

Even though her major focuses on painting, King has seen the impact her studies have had on all aspects of her art. “Even just from one focus, all areas of my art have improved. I’ve seen how learning basic ideas and principles transfer to all mediums of art.”

King said being an artist inevitably comes with challenges and obstacles that must be overcome.

“There’s no such thing as reaching perfection in art, but you have to find that point where you are content and don’t overwork something.”

She continued, “Art is a process. There’s always an ugly phase in your projects, but you have to have faith to keep working on it.”

King pieces together her original paintings and drawings with words and designs that she creates digitally on Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator. She finds much of her inspiration in the world around her.

“Hawaii and its beauty have been such a great place for me to grow as an artist,” King expressed. “I find so much inspiration in the colors and the beauty of the ocean and nature. I feel like others can relate to this as well which is why it’s been fun to share that in my art.”

Much of King’s success and strength to move forward she attributes to the support of her friends and professors. “My friends are always encouraging me to pursue and to share what I love, not to give up.”

One of King’s roommates, Becca Teo, a senior from Texas studying anthropology, purchased a sticker and used it to decorate her laptop. “I love my sticker that Emily made because it is a sleek, cool design to add to my laptop. I love it even more because it’s original and made by one of my friends.”

King’s friend, Tavia Thompson, a senior from Texas studying elementary education, said, “It has been so cool to see Emily put her art into stickers. I really like the variety of designs she creates. They are all so unique and I don’t ever feel like I’m wasting my money buying something I already have.”

Writer: Alyssa Odom