By Nathan Campbell, Multimedia Editor

With restrictions comes creativity, but creativity has no restrictions. During the shutdown, many activities have stopped such as sports, clubs, jobs, and get-togethers, but some talents can grow in any environment. 

Art has always played an important role when we look back at historical events because artists capture how people during that time really felt. It could be shown through glorious statues, like in Ancient Greece, or beautiful Art Deco paintings depicting the glamour of the 1920s. In this moment, COVID-19 has people finding new ways to express what they are feeling. 

Freshman Kylie Thompson has most definitely used this time to be more creative. Thompson is a talented artist whose works have been prominently displayed outside the art room at Saegertown High School. She was the only freshman permitted to take Art II this year. “She is an amazing artist who has kept up with the most talented of upperclassmen this year,”  art teacher Ashley Corvin said.

Since the shutdown started, Thompson has focused on other artistic media. “I’ve done my makeup almost every day since the shutdown,” Thompson said. She is referring to much more than just the daily routine. Thompson has been using makeup artistically to reflect TikTok trends, create eyeshadows to match Harry Styles’s recent album “Fine Line” and even pay homage to Post Malone. 

Thompson shared that her recent “extra time” has really allowed her to explore makeup as art and create more abstract and complicated looks. She loves makeup; she thinks it’s fun and a great way to express herself. 

She even made TikToks about each of her makeup looks, performing the platform’s breakout dances like “Savage” by Megan Thee Stallion and explaining why she creates the different looks, like the one for Post Malone. She says it’s a great opportunity to focus and do more things for herself, but she misses her friends and school and hopes the quarantine ends soon.  

Art is one of the most important ways humans document history, and Kylie Thompson is doing her part, finding inspiration in the virtual world.  “I’m not at all surprised to hear she is spending her time creatively,” Ms. Corvin said. “I can’t wait to see her work.” You can view Thompson’s gallery from this school year on artsonia. 

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