Arts

Shanice Pimentel ’14: Finding Her Passion for Art

Coming from a family of artists, Shanice Pimentel ’14 was surrounded by the rich conceptions and histories of art even at an early age. Pimentel vividly recalls sitting next to her aunt, who is from the Dominican Republic, and watching her brush strokes create dimension and color on the white campus as she painted.

At Andover, Pimentel started further exploring art in her lower year. “I took Art 304 with [Elaine] Crivelli, [Instructor in Art]. That’s when I learned a lot of techniques that I’ve been using, but never really was educated on,” said Pimentel.

She is now actively immersing herself in more formal artistic endeavors. Pimentel spent this past summer abroad in Provence, France, with the Barat Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on the development of arts among youth. According to Pimentel, central aspects of the program included a month-long homestay with an emphasis on French language immersion and art workshops.

“I visited a bunch of cities in the South of France that have been influenced by famous artists like [Vincent] Van Gogh and Marcel Duchamp. I did a lot of art installations, and I got a lot of time to think about my art and my artistic personality,” said Pimentel.

Out of all the artistic growth that Pimentel has experienced over the past four years, she feels that the greatest development is the shift of her artistic commitment from a leisurely hobby to a more serious passion. Pimentel hopes to pursue art as a main course of study in college.

“I started out being able to take something and copy it perfectly. Now, it’s a lot more creative and I try to be expressive about it. I try to do things that use multimedia, where before I would do mostly drawing. I’ve been able to teach myself how to use different types of materials and create art that way,” said Pimentel.

Reflecting on her time at Andover, Pimentel has one simple piece of advice for emerging artists.

“If you’re interested in the art program, go talk to someone. Get informed and get involved. If you really feel that you love it, you should really pursue it,” said Pimentel.