How a 16yr old artist uses Tik Tok to influence the world

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drawing has always been my thing

from the time i was two i drew all the

time my mom said i’d drawn the furniture

on the walls

but i think she’s just making that up to

make me feel bad i live in california

with my mom my dad my older brother and

my younger sister

this is my family i was a pretty

creative kid

i have so many journals and stacks of

drawings that i’ve saved over the years

unfortunately i’ve most likely

contributed to the death of more than a

few trees

which is not cool but my art was on the

cover of a few school publications or

t-shirts which was cool

but mostly i drew because i loved it

fast forward to december of 2019

on my 15th birthday my parents got me an

ipad and i started to learn to draw

digitally

going from traditional mediums like

paints pencils and markers to using a

screen and stylist took some practice

traditional and digital art are very

different how the screen feels the way

the pen works we can make corrections

change

colors i quickly adapt it and i’ve grown

to enjoy digital drawing

definitely a win for the trees like many

people my age

i started tick tock account as many of

you know tick tock is a social media

platform

where you can post up to 60 second

videos and showcase your talent or

really post anything you want

whether that’s dancing singing cooking

poetry

or my case drawing when i joined there

were only a few artists on the platform

but using a drawing app i created my

first ever tick tock

drawing the british cartoon character

peppa pig as a human

and people really seem to like it

from there i drew flounder from the

little mermaid and paired the platypus

from phineas and ferb and many other

characters

this led to my series where i do brands

like google instagram and sprite as

humans

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i’m starting to get some attention and

was posting in between school sports

practice

and my community service hours and spend

time with friends and family

things were going well then cover 19

appeared no in-person school

no seeing friends staying home you know

the story

i plan to get a job working at a local

dig camp teaching kids art but with the

pandemic

not many jobs were available for teens

so tick-tock became my way to

communicate and participate in the

lockdown world

it gave me goals and something to do and

let me do my favorite thing in the

entire world which was art i could be

creative and focus on something fun and

positive

sometimes i was posting two or three

times a day

and started drawing well-known tick-tock

influencers as cartoons

or as themselves in various existing

cartoon styles

it was fun and i got a lot of feedback

now

a little more than a year since i first

got tick tock i have 1.8

million followers they’re from around

the world of all ages

and for the most part i get positive

feedback and in many different languages

some of them have told me that i’ve

inspired them to work harder

or start developing their talent and to

me that’s the best compliment

i’m often asked how i decide what to

draw or how i plan my next drawing

as a kid i drew it was fun then as a 15

year old trying to grow their following

i drew what was trending or popular or

what would give me likes and shares

but now as a old and wise

16 year old i want to draw things that

matter to me throughout this pandemic

we have learned that parks whether it’s

to park down your street

a state or national park they are

essential for us

feeling and being happy in my family

we’ve always had a love for the parks

and the outdoors

my mom works in the field of park and

recreation and her passion definitely

influenced our family we grew up hiking

and camping whenever we could and

visiting our local parks on almost a

daily basis

we all need to do our part to protect

and preserve

our parks and open spaces together we

can make a difference

and ensure our parks are here for future

generations whether that’s by leaving no

trace

volunteering supporting funding or

speaking out so your voice can be heard

for me parks were my safe place to play

i could run jump make noise

be a kid and i believe every kid

deserves a great park i’ve drawn tick

tockers as superheroes in the past

but this pandemic has made us rethink

who the real superheroes are

they are our essential workers nurses

grocery store clerks first responders

teachers and let’s not forget our park

workers second

i think we have learned what we say

matters

how we say it matters and when we say to

inspire others and stand up for what

matters

we protect and preserve our planet and

build hope for all

it matters

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and you don’t have to be a youth put

laureate

even the voices that start small can

continue to make a big impact for years

and hopefully generations to come

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i am just a 16 year old with an ipad and

a passion to draw

who hopefully one day gets into art

school and with hard work and dedication

goes and works in animation studio

someday i’m doing what i love

and i’m also trying to make a difference

so to wrap things up don’t be afraid to

put yourself

out there say thank you to a superhero

we can all make a difference big and

small

and finally do what you love and you

will inspire others to do the same

you