Senior Tessa Ervin is an 18-year-old aspiring artist. Her drawings range from pencil doodles to full-fledged realistic cartoons. Ervin has not quite figured out if her art will give her a career, however she isn’t creating it for the career possibility; she’s creating it for her amusement.

“I create art because I love the process,” Ervin said. “It’s a good way to relieve stress for me. It keeps me busy and it’s a wonderful form of expression. It feels good so to make something with your own two hands.”

Ervin has been drawing since the sixth grade, and started by watching simple tutorial videos. Now, she sticks to her comfort zone, which is sketches.

“I use pencil to make the sketch and then, when I am happy with it, I go over it with pen,” Ervin said. “Then I color it in with colored pens, markers or highlighters.”

But Ervin’s process doesn’t begin with pencils. It is hard to draw without inspiration, and Ervin’s inspiration comes from many places.

“I follow a lot of artists on Instagram, so I pick up a lot on there,” Ervin said “I probably get my cartoon style from animation — I loved Disney as a kid.”

Ervin’s cartoon style consists of a realistic look and is differentiated from other artwork by her bright pops of colors.

Since she originally gained her art style from tutorials on Youtube, her style has become more of her own and she is proud of her work.

“If there is anyone out there who is out there trying their hand at art, keep at it.” Ervin said. “When you first start out, it can be terrible, but it’s really important to keep practicing. Have patience and things will improve for you.”