Yearlong Audition: Art now just a hobby for Andrew Kearns
By the end of his first semester, Kearns made the decision to leave the AFO program to pursue a degree in French, leaving art as a hobby.
Michael Todd
Assistant Spectrum Editor
When Andrew Kearns first considered higher education, he intended to pursue his artistic hobbies in college. Kearns entered VCU’s art foundation program last fall planning to major in graphic design.
By the end of his first semester, Kearns made the decision to leave the AFO program to pursue a degree in French, leaving art as a hobby.
Despite having a semester’s worth of investment in the program, Kearns has no reservations about the switch, and does not anticipate ever questioning his choice.
“My reasons for leaving AFO had more not to do with AFO than (they) did to do with AFO,” Kearns said. “I definitely don’t regret leaving AFO. Especially looking forward … to careers and where I want to go with my life, I think that leaving the School of the Arts was a good choice for me personally.”
All of Kearns’ AFO classes count as required electives for his new French major. Currently, he is well off in his new major and his new classes.
“AFO was good, but it wasn’t for me,” he said.
In AFO, Kearns said he felt that he had a fresh start after each project. He often averaged two hours of work outside his studio classes, not counting time before a project was due. Kearns spends a majority of his time reading now.
While abroad his senior year, Kearns became proficient in conversational French, without gaining much experience in writing. Kearns said he is excited for his French class, Advanced Grammar and Writing, because he feels it will work on improving his weaker French skills.
However, as behind as Kearns feels he is in his technical French skills, he said he believes he has an advantage over the rest of his classmates. He said he often feels like his classmates are hesitant to participate, which is largely based on conversation.
“It’s not necessarily prohibiting me from learning, but it’s preventing the course from moving as fast as I would like it to,” Kearns said. “I’m not really learning as much, as fast.”
Kearns said he knows what his French classmates might be feeling, though. In AFO, he often felt his skill level wasn’t where it should be but he said he didn’t think it affected his peers’ experience.
“In art … everybody’s working on their own project,” he said, “so if the professor has to spend more time talking to you about your idea, it’s not necessarily taking away from other students’ time.”
Kearns will continue his work-study job in the graphic design media lab, assisting students and faculty with printing. In addition to this, he recently began working at Extreme Pizza on the weekends.
As happy as he is with his new major, Kearns admits that he will probably return to art, if only as a hobby on his own time.
“If I’m doing it because it’s what I enjoy, and I’m making some work that I can be proud of … then that’s enough for me,” he said. “I’m 19. I always have time to come back to art.”
