By Junanna Chen
The terrifying blare of the radar alarm echoes and Kim Ly rolls out of bed to start her day. Padding from room to room, she finds herself deep in thought and contemplative on breakfast. Costco breakfast or Costco breakfast? With coffee or coffee? Even with routines, Kim’s plagued with indecisiveness.
Inspired by the photojournalists Henri Cartier-Bresson and Dorothea Lange, junior Kim Ly joined Baron Banner to share her artistry with Fountain Valley High School. Equipped with a passion for art and photography, Kim clearly has goals and aspirations in mind—to fulfill her destiny as a starving artist.
“I was thinking of either going into graphic design or photography when I grow up. I’ll probably be a starving artist when I grow up, but it’s okay,” Kim said with a laugh.
Being the artist she is, Kim incorporates creativity into everything she does. When she isn’t studying for her favorite subject, history, she’s creating new worlds in Minecraft.
Kim’s got a lot to juggle, but she finds balance in her life and knows how to capture the perfect moments because of her mom’s work ethic and lead.
“My hero’s my mom because she is a very hard worker and I admire that,” Kim said.
Kim’s appreciation for art extends into literature, and as someone who values hard work, it’s no surprise that she expects the same level of excellence from her books.
“I sometimes read, but it sounds like I don’t enjoy the books I’m reading because I critique it so much, but I enjoy reading,” Kim said.
If she had it her way, Kim would be moving pens and cameras with telekinesis, but fortunately, for the sake of other artists and photographers, telekinesis doesn’t exist. As a triple threat in photography, illustrating and Minecraft, Kim Ly’s ambiguous plans are due to inspire another generation of artists.