Junior Thalia Huys-Hernandez is one of the many amazing artists Memorial holds. Ever since elementary, Huys has developed a love for art, and continues to explore.

GENESIS: Have you always been interested in art?

THALIA HUYS-HERNANDEZ: “Actually no, I wasn’t, but thanks to one of the photography teachers at Memorial, Ms. Mix, she was also my elementary art teacher, I started loving art. Just the things she’s taught and the art projects she gave, her class was always the one I looked forward to every week.”

G: How has your practice changed over time?

TH: “They didn’t offer multiple art classes until high school, so it varied in elementary from painting to drawing. Then when middle school came, I took required art classes, which I didn’t mind, they were just really similar. When I entered high school, I had a handful of options. They offered classes like ceramics, jewelry, drawing, and photography.”

G: What art classes have you taken?

TH: “I took standard art classes in both elementary and middle school, which was Intro to 2D art. Then I took three years of regular photography and now I’m in AP photography.”

G: What interested you in taking courses at Memorial?

TH: “When I finished intro to 2D art, I wanted to continue art, but I wasn’t sure about what to take because of the multiple options I had, but then my friend, Rayan Rios, told me about this photo class he loved. I then decided to try it out my second semester and ended up continuing photography.”

G: Which one of your works did you enjoy doing the most?

TH: “I did enjoy my elementary and middle school projects, but high school is where all the real action started. My favorite project would be my sophomore project, which was a Photoshop project of my best friend edited with flowers coming out of her face. It was really cool to work with and it’s one of my all time favorites.”

G: What is your specialty?

TH: “My specialty is photography. I mostly like to take photos of nature and portraits of people, or just have people model in the ways they are most comfortable with. I like to capture the true happiness of a human being.”

G: What’s your favorite aspect of art?

TH: “My favorite part of art is that it is such a creative way to express how I feel in such a delicate way. It could be through a painting or even through a photo. Or you could just create something and end up with something so unexpected. It’s the element of surprise and the best part is it could be the best thing you could’ve done.”

G: What is your dream project?

TH: “My dream project is to create something that could be so emotionally drawing to people. I want it to express something to people that would leave them so surprised. To leave people standing there and admiring something so unexpected.”