Newark High School senior uses art to express herself
NEWARK – When she was younger Autumn Boham dreamed of becoming an author/illustrator, penning creative stories and then drawing up the illustrations.
But her dreams changed a bit after a fourth-grade art teacher, Deserae Green, made a rather strong impression on her. Coincidentally Green happened to be Boham's former art teacher from Zanesville, and when they were back together at Heritage Middle School things started to get pretty creative.
It was in Green's class that Boham began cultivating her inner artist, and since then she hasn't been able to escape it.
"I get this feeling so bad to just do some art," Boham said. "Whenever I'm feeling any sort of emotions, I feel like I have to express it through art."
Some of Boham's most recent work appeared in the Newark High School art show in May. Her featured item was a ceramic teapot that depicted a dark, depressing young woman on one side, and a bright, cheerful one on the other. The teapot is created in a whimsical style, looking like something that came out of Wonderland.
She also presented a set of stacking ceramic cups that when put together resemble a tree. Each cup is a piece of the tree trunk and features something that could be found on a tree, such as a heart carved with two lovers names and a rustic sign post.
Over the years Boham has experimented with many mediums, including ceramics, painting, drawing, photography and everything in between. She likes it all, she said, and when it comes to looking for inspiration for her work, she is at a loss to explain it.
"I see something and I want to make it. I tend to see something in it that no one else does," she said. "If I'm at school I'll start doodling out of nowhere and then all of a sudden it becomes something else."
What she definitely knows is that her art is expressive. Boham can look through her past works and immediately know how she was feeling when she made it.
"Art is the only way I know who I am. Without it I would be so lost and confused," she said.
Her passion for art made a recent trip to France all the more enjoyable. She and her classmates were able to visit The Louvre and see famous works such as the Mona Lisa, as well as walk through the gardens at the Rodin Museum. The trip was a great way to waken up her art senses, she said.
Now that she had graduated Newark High School, Bohman will continue to create art and is looking forward to starting classes at Ursuline College this fall, where she will be majoring in art therapy. It's pretty amazing, she said, since she had never even heard of art therapy before this year.
"It was my mom who found the art therapy program. She looked through it and said, 'Autumn, it's you.' And I'm like, oh you're right, it is me," Boham said. "I want to be able to do some kind of social work. If I can help someone else through art, it would be so rewarding."
emaddern@newarkadvocate.com
740-328-8513
Twitter: @emmaddern
About This Series
Licking County is home to many talented artists, and we want to showcase them. Artist Spotlight is a new monthly series featuring local artists of all mediums — drawing, photography, painting, sculpture, etc. If you have a suggestion for a future profile, let us know at advocate@newarkadvocate.com or 740-328-8821.