(November 23, 2004) — Sophomore Johaina Crisostomo may seem like any other art student as she walks down the hall, but she is far from being the run-of-the-mill artist. Although she has only been in art classes recently, Crisostomo has been infatuated with art her entire life. Even in the Philippines, Crisostomo knew that art was an important part of her life. When she first came to America in seventh grade, she was finally able to take the classes that she was interested in. “In the Philippines I wasn’t able to explore my artistic talents. When I came [here] though, I couldn’t get enough art,” she said. Her experiences in art weren’t always pleasant, though. Sometimes her art was criticized for its seemingly melancholy nature. In junior high, her art teacher said that she drew too dark and that she had a “strong hand.” However, Crisostomo took it pretty well. She did not mind the criticism, but a “strong hand” was just the way she drew. “I like using really bold colors and strong lines in my art and I think that reflects much of my personality and perception of the world; I am a person who is very passionate about life.” Now Crisostomo is taking art once more, this time in Judith Craemer’s class. There she continues to enhance her artistic talents by drawing humans in various stages of life and living. For this she uses her family, especially her sisters, one of whom attends Clark. Their support and help allows her to pursue her artistic interests. Crisostomo said that she hopes her life in art won’t just end in high school, so she hopes. One of her greatest ambitions is to travel around the world to artistic countries such as France and Italy, as well as the city of New York. She eventually wants to own her own art studio and hold her own art exhibits. “I also want to get involved in the areas of film making and magazine production, not just art,” Crisostomo said.