Kevin Fiorenzo ’02 has been drawing since he was a little kid. His first memory is copying pictures from a Charlie Brown Christmas book around the holidays. His original dream job growing up was to be an animator for Disney, but for a long time as an adult he did not really draw at all, and when he did, he put little effort into it. He started back up about five years ago just as a relaxing activity to do at night and on weekends outside of his regular job, which is a writer and editor for Penn State Auxiliary and Business Services.

Kevin never really worked hard at drawing or practicing because everybody always told him that he was talented, and he thought that was enough. It wasn’t until he had gotten older that he realized that even with talent, you still have to work hard to develop your skills. In Kevin’s words, “Honestly, it means you should work harder, especially if you enjoy doing it.” Some of his favorite things to draw are portraits; most of the time, he said, “It ends up being famous musicians, and I’ll listen to their Spotify playlists on a loop while I’m drawing. I’m also starting to try to build my work up into a small business by doing commissions. It’s cool to be able to provide something for people that they will give to a loved one as a gift so that they can hang it in their home.”

According to Kevin, he thinks the biggest way MPS prepared him for the future was by showing him all the different mediums of art there are. Before high school, he pretty much only drew cartoons, but his classes at MPS exposed him to drawing with all different materials (charcoal, colored pencils, pen, and ink) and in different styles. “I think the person who was my biggest inspiration would have to be Mrs. Mauthe. Her Drawing I and II classes during my freshman and sophomore years at MPS, were the ones that stand out as the biggest ones for inspiration. I’m definitely grateful for the art classes I took at MPS and as a matter of fact, two of the pieces I completed in high school are still hanging above my drafting table to this day!”