Graphic Design Personal Statement

I originally entered art school with the intention of becoming a painter. I was drawn to the raw nature of expressing whatever I felt in any way and by any rules I wanted to follow. Despite my passion my parents encouraged me to seek out something that could "pay the bills" and I choose graphic design without knowing what it was. After a year of learning just the basics I knew that I likely would be painting far less from then on because I felt an instant connection to my chosen path. I knew that design was how I wanted to live my life and I comfortably settled in to designing things with a client in mind.

I supplanted my Associates and Bachelors degrees by obtaining jobs in the design field. My goal at the time was to fully immerse myself in my field and leaner how to properly use graphic design to influence people's behaviors. I was fulfilled at the time to work with clients and solve their problems as my work became more about others then it ever had been.
This position was what I had been working towards throughout school so I was surprised when I discovered that the type of environment and culture an agency has actually aligned less and less with my vision for my future in design. I knew then that I was becoming less drawn to the client side of design and more to something else. I just wasn't sure what it was yet.

I began freelancing and eventually started my own studio as I explored exactly what I wanted from design. This exploration allowed me to get a clearer picture of what I see myself doing in the future. I discovered that doing things for clients wasn't what I wanted for my design in my long term future. That realization brought me to the conclusion that I needed to pursue every bit of knowledge I could in order to eventually recognize my long term goals. I knew that my skills and knowledge of design needed to be improved in order to even pursue my evolving