2023 Merit Scholarship Recipient: Sarah Hutchison

Describe the work you submitted for merits.

Conceptually, all of my work is shaped by my relationship with grief and love and change. It's about reconciliation and the grossness of admitting that you were wrong and learning to make peace and asking for help and confronting things that make you feel bad. Blah blah blah.

Visually, it is a sweet little tiny baby example of what graphic design can look like for someone who doesn't care about logos and that type (lol) of stuff. My work is informed by my formal background in graphic design! I can have fun, too!

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

I plan on learning some new tricks.

What inspires you? 

The sun and songs that I like and my mom and my dad and a younger version of myself that really has something special to say. 

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

Anything I've made using individually applied, colorful letter forms to tell a story or share how I feel. It allows me to really ruminate on everything going on inside my head and makes it all feel so much more important and necessary to express. 

My largest iteration of this is a conversation with/confession to a loved one who I really miss. It's about how tricky grief can be. (the form ultimately doesn't really matter, it's mostly about what needs to be said).

Anything you're obsessed with at the moment? 

Flaming Hot Cheetos by Clairo

Have you ever seen a ghost?

Maybe.