Alumna Monica Srivastava (BFA ’19 Art Education and Painting) sits down with CanvasRebel for a Q&A feature about overcoming obstacles and how art practices evolve over time.

She shares, “I always knew I wanted to be an artist, even if I didn’t always know what that meant. I’ve been a maker and creative person since I was a child, and my need to engage with the arts only increased as I got older. When I decided to pursue an arts education at Massachusetts College of Art and Design, I didn’t know what that was going to look like. I don’t think I even felt like a “real artist” until I was 21. When I first got to MassArt as an incoming freshman, I hopped around degrees for a year after declaring my major. I finally settled in as a dual major in art education and painting. In the art education department, I took a class called “interdisciplinary studio” taught by Steve Locke. He showed me what it meant to be a contemporary artist. He taught me the basics of engaging with contemporary art, the importance of visiting museums and galleries, how to be critical and think for myself. It was through this class that I learned about the different hats artists often wear.”

Read more in CanvasRebel.