School Doesn't Define You As An Artist

This past Sunday, we had our midterm practical exam at my makeup course. While I did quite well, I couldn’t help but feel inadequate compared to my extremely talented classmates.

The components of the exam included two looks, with written instruction on the whiteboard. Truth be told, I was extremely nervous because I wasn’t used to an exam being practical. Almost all of the exams I’ve ever taken (besides piano teaching) have been written.

While I performed quite well (over 90%), I couldn’t help but feel like I have let myself down. Weeks of practicing endlessly on my friends, and I still didn’t get a perfect score. I was also slightly envious of the few students who did score 100%. However, after seeing their work, I wholeheartedly believe they deserve it.

After class, I had dinner with my friend who was my model for the exam, and while I tried not to feel sad, I told her that I was a little disappointed in myself. However, one thing that really helped put things into perspective is when my friend said that school doesn’t define how hardworking or talented I am as a makeup artist. While there is work to be done execution wise, I shouldn’t let a scoring rubric bring down my enthusiasm for the class. My art will only get better with time, and I need to remember all the other great qualities I can bring to this heavily saturated industry.

At the end of the day, it’s a business. I want to become a makeup artist, not only to help people feel and look good but to make money! For one, I am a marketer and that’s a skill set that could be utilized in my own makeup business.

After my friend helped me put things into perspective, I was able to look back at some of the earlier looks I’ve done when I first started my Instagram page, and I could already see huge improvements. That said, I do truly hope I will be able to improve even more for the final exam (which has both a written and practice component)!