Milem painted a bouquet of flowers.
Courtesy | Catherine Milem

In this senior artist spotlight, Catherine Milem discusses her journey to choosing her major and falling in love with her own creativity. 

How did you decide to become an art major? 

I never really took any art classes in high school, but I have always enjoyed drawing. The first art class I took here was Drawing I with Professor Julio Suarez and I just loved that class. 

I really appreciated the way he emphasized that art is not just a matter of talent, but that it is also dependent on the amount of time and work you put into it. You can only be skilled in art if you put in the time and practice every day. 

And so that was my first encounter with the art department, even though I had already decided that I wanted to be an English major. 

And then I took oil painting I the next semester. And at that point, I realized I really loved art and decided to declare that semester.

Do you have any prior art experience? 

No; I think there are a lot of students who come to Hillsdale on art scholarships, but there are also a lot of students who take art just for fun.

I think that if you enjoy art and you enjoy that kind of work, it is fun; but more than anything, it is challenging work because it requires a very intense level of focus for a long period of time.

It’s also incredible to see the way you can develop over just one semester. There will be students who come in knowing almost nothing about drawing, and then by the end of the semester, they will be making beautiful self-portraits that will blow you away when you see them in the art show. 

Do you have a specific art influence, somebody you know or somebody in the past who has inspired you/whose work you admire? 

I’m from Owensboro, Kentucky, but growing up, my family and I would take trips to Chicago to visit the Art Institute there. From a young age, that was something that really stuck with me. They also have a very excellent exhibit of Impressionist artists featuring Monet and a few others.

I really love Mary Cassatt, and more recently, I visited the Cincinnati Art Museum over the summer, and there’s an artist named Elizabeth Nourse who I also love. The first time I ever encountered her work was in Cincinnati, but I have looked at her work a little bit more since then, and I really love it.

As a senior, how do you feel about graduating in May?

It’s bittersweet because I’ve learned so much, but I know that I’ll be able to use what I have learned because making art is something that I can continue to do for the rest of my life. It’s a skill I can continue to develop, but it’s also a tangible way to represent what I’ve learned throughout my time here. It’s been such a blessing, especially since it wasn’t something that I was expecting to do here.

But I am sad because I’m getting ready for my senior show and realizing that I have so many ideas, and I just wish I had more time to work here, take more classes, and complete more projects. 

Were your parents supportive of your decision to become an art major?

 I came in knowing I wanted to be an English major and then my parents thought I needed some kind of practical major or minor. I had taken Drawing I my sophomore year, but when they suggested I try for a business minor, I decided to register for accounting. 

Gosh, I was maybe in that class one day and I didn’t really enjoy it. I’m not particularly skilled in that area, and I figured I wouldn’t be very good at accounting. I eventually switched to graphic design because it leaned more towards art and seemed more practical.

I went to Professor Suarez and I think he knew, based on what I was interested in, that I probably wouldn’t love digital mediums as much, and so he just asked me if I wanted to be an art major.  Within the course of a month, I went from business to a double major in art and English.

What are your plans after college? 

I am interested in teaching after college because there are not as many art teachers as there are English and history ones. And there are definitely not as many art teachers who are instructed in more technical and representational art. 

Another exciting part of post-grad would be studying at an atelier. An atelier is primarily a place for studio work where students can improve on their technical skills and practice. All the students are working on the same thing, and it is pretty similar to the studio environment of a Hillsdale class, from what I understand. 

Do your loved ones/friends have any of your art on display in their homes? 

In Sculpture I, I made a sculptor of Athena, and my mom loves it! She wants it when I graduate, and so I am making a plaster cast of it now for my show, and then I will give it to her afterwards. I save most of my work for art shows.