MSW Student Lara Klopp is getting her graduate degree online, but that doesn’t stop her from wanting to connect with what’s happening on campus. After hearing about the FSU Graduate Student Awards offered by the Graduate School at FSU, she decided to apply. 

Initially, she debated over which artworks to submit as she works with a variety of art mediums but settled on three pieces (see below). Her art piece “Sideshow Performer,” a collage she created using cut pieces of magazine glued together, was chosen as a finalist. 

The award recognizes the artistic talent of graduate students from across the university. Submissions for the award are evaluated on the quality of the artworks, but also on the success of the accompanying artist’s statement. The statement describes why the artist was moved to create the piece, what the artist was trying to convey to viewers, and provides a deeper understanding of the accompanying artwork.

Lara found inspiration for her piece “Sideshow Performer” (below) at the Virginia State Fair. “There were these performers who did sensational acts,” she recalls vividly. “This particular woman seemed to be a subject of self-pain. She took a dollar per fairgoer after the show and let them staple it to her. I didn’t like what her treatment said about our society.”

In her artist statement, Lara stated that “As a portrait artist, my goal is to highlight the individuality of my subjects. Every person, every moment of their life, radiates a mood, a pose, and a gesture. Historically I have created my portraits using oil paint, which allows for both softness and the necessary specificity to capture fine details of life and emotion. Recently I’ve discovered a love for magazine collage. Collage brings color and texture into a new focus and allows me to incorporate unique visual interest into my work. In all of my portraits, I want to depict the humanity that lies beneath the surface.”

Although her love for the art of collage is more recent, Lara has been an accomplished artist for several years, including portrait work using oil paints along with abstract works and landscapes using acrylic paints. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from the College of William and Mary, completed her Master of Fine Art in Painting from Wichita State University (1995), and is currently a high school art teacher. 

It is her work as an art teacher that drew her to social work. She has realized since working with high school students how much she enjoys working with teenagers and helping them connect more with their sense of self as they grow and develop, but Lara realized that her work as a teacher only gives her so much one-on-one time with her students. 

“My love for my students is what drew me to social work. The best part of my job is my one-on-one time with my students and helping them to develop confidence, pride, and strength,” she explained. “But I could only help them so much on a personal level. I wanted that to be my whole job.”

As a Florida resident, Lara needed the flexibility of a part-time program that would allow her to balance her responsibilities as a teacher while pursuing her own educational goals. FSU was her first choice as it was a state school that was top-rated. 

“I’ve enjoyed the interactions with my fellow students, the readings which have opened my eyes to the world of social work, and the connection I’ve made with professors that are a constant source of patience and guidance through the learning process,” Lara said.

Through her experiences, she has found an appreciation for the need for strong advocates and social work informed public policy that ties closely with her desire to improve the lives of young adults on an individual level. She is particularly interested in working toward serving LGBTQ+ youths and youths in the foster care system but looks forward to the continual guidance of her courses and fieldwork.  

Although she has no plans yet to incorporate art or art therapy into her future social work aspiration, Lara’s goals as an artist and social work synergized in her desire to make the world a better and more beautiful place. 

To see more of Lara’s artwork, visit her art website http://www.larakloppstudio.com/.