Madi Lietz, Aug. 1, 2022 at the 2022 High School Journalism Institute in Corvallis, Ore. Aliannah Shalikar

With the help of ancient Roman gladiators and the Mona Lisa, 16-year-old Madi Lietz found her passion for art.

In Madi’s sixth grade history class, students were required to create projects about their lessons on the ancient world. Madi drew gladiators with colored pencils for her history project.

Not only did she learn something new about ancient Rome, but she discovered something about herself: She loved art and everything that has to do with it, from the creative process to sharing her work with others.

“You start with nothing, then you build from there,” Madi said. “It turns into something beautiful.”

Madi is a self-taught artist from Keizer who uses her own art to spread love to others. Art is her form of self-care, she said, and creating it inspires her in other parts of life.

The McNary High School junior quickly began experimenting with different forms, styles and media. Madi has recreated Vincent van Gogh’s “The Starry Night” with acrylic paint, drawn a picture of her girlfriend in black and white, and molded small green frog earrings out of clay.

No matter what the finished piece is, however, Madi said the process of creating it is always her favorite part.

“Putting a pencil to paper is amazing because of the endless opportunities,” she said.

Madi rarely keeps the finished products for herself and instead gives them to friends and family. She gave a painting of one beloved pet, a white Dogo Argentino, to her Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps instructor.

“It makes me happy that I’m able to make others happy with what I create,” she said.

Art has also helped Madi grow as an individual and define who she is.

It also introduced her to the freedom to create in other ways. She has started documenting her art in TikTok videos. Madi has also injected artistic creativity into her personal style, with pink highlights in her hair, handcrafted clay earrings and beaded bracelets.

During the pandemic, as Madi’s school closed down and she was at home all the time, she felt unmotivated when it came to classes and lost interest in activities she used to enjoy.

It was art that helped her find happiness again. Madi said she would get out of bed and leave her room to go paint in the garage, and the canvases and acrylic paints kept her company.

She started painting rocks with motivational quotes and pictures to leave around her neighborhood. When Madi created the kindness rocks, she had one goal in mind: to help and inspire others through her art.

“I’ve always fallen back on art and never abandoned it,” she said. “Even if I’m not sitting down and painting, my art and creativity will always show up in the work I do in the future.”

-- Aliannah Shalikar, Liberty High School

This story was produced by student reporters as a part of the High School Journalism Institute, an annual collaboration among The Oregonian/OregonLive, Oregon State University and the other Oregon media organizations. For more information or to support the program, go to oregonlive.com/hsji.

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