2023 Merit Scholarship Recipient: Ani Jamison

Describe the work you submitted for merits.

I submitted two works. One was a short story for Narrative and Storytelling and the other was an art history essay about Authorship and African Masks in Museums, which was written for Art History Seminar.

Why did you decide to come to MCAD?

I decided to come to MCAD because I love telling stories. I started out in animation for that reason, however I realized that I wouldn’t have the time I needed in Animation to tell the kinds of stories I wanted to and I found a love for comics so I became a comic major, which I wouldn’t have been able to do elsewhere!

What are your plans for your senior year? And beyond?

My plan for senior year is to create prose and comic work that I can start publishing. I’m currently planning to do an internship and I’m looking at a lot of editing jobs because helping with the art process and assisting other artists is a lot of fun for me.

Favorite thing about college life (so far)?

I love the community of people I’m a part of and the relationships with my professors that I’ve been able to establish over my time here.

What inspires you?

I am heavily inspired by media and I often get ideas by noticing plot, characters, and concepts and thinking about how I can change them or what I feel is missing. Sometimes I’ll watch a tv show and notice a path the show decided not to go down and I get inspired to take that path to see what will happen. I also love subverting tropes or using them in ways I feel are more relatable or fresh.

Do you have a favorite piece you've made? Describe it!

I’m not sure because I’m never fully happy with anything I make, but I’ve been working on my own series, Seathena, for years now. It had a webcomic run when I was in high school but I couldn’t stand to look at it anymore because of how much my art and writing has improved. I’ve sat with these characters for a long time and I really hope they’ll be in a book someday or return to the web. However, I’m extremely proud of this world and these characters, I think it’s my favorite series I have.

Anything you're obsessed with at the moment?

Nobody will be surprised by this answer, but The Owl House on Disney Channel. I see so much potential in the show and it’s written in a very endearing, passionate way. I love drawing the characters in my free time. No matter how minor the character is, it’s likely that I’ve drawn them.

Anything we didn't ask that you'd like to talk about?

I will take any opportunity to talk about my cat, Marmalade Waffles. He’s an orange and white domestic shorthair who is extremely shy. Everyone says he and I are the same person, although he takes a few more naps than me.