Norwich University of the Arts: Jillian Ballas

Jillian Ballas is studying a range of fine art mediums at Norwich University Arts.

How did you discover your passion for Fine Art?

Fine Art was an instinctive choice for me, ever since I was little my parents have fostered creativity and so I just found myself time and time again finding opportunities to create. It felt so incredibly natural that I pursued it and eventually felt that I wanted this as a career and not just as a hobby.

Why did you choose to study to NUA? Is it how you expected?

I chose to study at Norwich University Arts because during the interview I discovered that I would be able to explore different areas of art on the course and see where my practice would take me. A lot of schools require you to choose a medium, like sculpture or painting, so it was really intriguing to me that NUA didn’t have constraints in that way. I’m doing sculpture this year which I’d never done before, and I love it! I would not have known that if I had to go in saying I want to do painting, so it’s better than I expected.

What is your favourite thing about studying at NUA or your course?

I love how the tutors encourage you to try different perspectives, to go bigger in your work and try things you’d never thought of. They’re really verbal and hands-on with helping you. I also love that the university is incorporated within the city and close to everything.

What do you think about the community/student experience at NUA?

It’s incredibly friendly, everyone’s willing to help each other with their work and bounce ideas off one another. I like the relatively small class sizes; my class is 80 students so you really get to know everybody. We all help each other if there are any issues, and there’s a group chat so we’re constantly talking if there’s any issues about class. It’s a really positive experience.

How do you think your course will help you in what you want to do next?

It’s going to give me experience in making and networking which will help me in a lot of ways. The course also gives us so many options to take part in external exhibitions and competitions, and we get advice from our tutors in how to approach those and put proposals together so I can see that really helping me going forward in my career.