My earliest memory of doing art is with my grandma. My mom raised me with the help of my grandparents. We lived with them until I was six years old. I was 9 months old when my mom and grandparents found out I had cerebral palsy, that I had a stroke before I was born. This affected the left side of my body with mild to severe paralysis. I did two to six different types of therapy from age 9 months until I was thirteen years old. My mom said she couldn’t have done it without my grandparents’ help. My grandma would do all types of drawing and painting with me. She would have me make cards and pictures for my mom. As I got older, a teenager, my grandma slowed down, and we didn’t do as much. I went in a different direction, and it took me years to get back into art. I attended Highline College after high school and was pursuing a general AA degree when I realized I wanted to pursue a career in graphic design. It was during my bachelor’s program at Highline College that I knew I needed more art classes and needed to transfer to Digipen Institute of Technology, and I’m so glad I did. My art has improved and is continuing to improve. I’m exactly where I need to be.
Darby Strong
