Our annual roundup of high school grads who are heading out into the world to pursue their passion in the arts
Jacob Patrosh, 18 
Graduated 2019, George McDougall High School
Talent: Musical performance on the euphonium and trumpet
Role models: My creative/ artistic role models are my family. I grew up in a musical family and was brought up surrounded by music on a daily basis.
Aha moment: Watching my brothers perform in Stetsons and the Calgary Stampede band, and watching my older sister’s recitals.
What’s next: I’ve been accepted to the University of Lethbridge starting this September for a bachelor of music and education.
Dream for the future: My dream is to perform as a part of a Disney flash mob at the Disneyland/Disney World parks and open up a music studio where I teach intermediate brass musicians who want to take their musicality to the next level.
Jaromie A. Chapiel, 17 
Graduated 2019, Bert Church High School
Talent: Cinematography and photography
Role models: I have always looked up to Roman Atwood, a YouTube star who lives a family-friendly exciting life, and this inspired me to pursue the happy exciting life I’ve always wanted. And Peter McKinnon was the YouTube sensation who heavily inspired my interest in photography.
Aha moment: My “aha moment” was two years ago in 10th grade when I was assigned the task of making a video for science class. Despite the video taking weeks to film and over 20 hours to edit and having it turn out horrible, I had fallen in love with film and soon started taking Audio Video classes within my school. Within a year and a half, I had completed all three years’ worth of video courses and began taking photography classes.
What’s next: The next step for me is to take a gap year and save up as much money as I can so I can move to Vancouver and attend either LaSalle College for film or Vancouver Film School.
Dream for the future: My dream is to live an exciting life and adventure the world while bringing ideas to life through film. I want to one day have created my very own movie.
Chloe Jorgensen, 18
Graduated 2019, Bert Church High School
Talent: Acting
Role models: One of my favourite Broadway actors of all time, Alan Cumming. He is just so true to himself and has such a genuine adoration for the work he does. Ah! He lives the dream.
Aha moment: Acting was more of a hobby, until people started telling me I was good at it! My dad was essentially the one who told me I should start taking acting seriously. I’m very lucky to have parents who support me picking a career in the arts.
What’s next: I’ll be attending Vancouver Film School starting in January 2020 for the yearlong Acting for Film and Television program.
Dream for the future: I really want to look back at the work I’ve done, and feel like I have been successful. The goal is to be an individual who people find solace in.
Keri Qiu, 18 
Graduated 2019, W.H. Croxford High School
Talent: Painting
Role models: Frida Kahlo is very special to me. Her art inspires me with its colour, culture and the characters she uses in the paintings. She uses a lot of self-portraits to show how she feels about the topic in those art pieces. The layers of colours and the elements she puts together create special scenes sending messages to people. [Her art] taught me how to use my emotions and thoughts to form a creative piece of my own. Moreover, it taught me how to provide purpose with feelings to others by creating a resonance (in other words, empathy) in different people.
Aha moment: My grandparents sent me to art school to do an extracurricular art class course in my third grade because of some doodles I did at the age of two. It was like everyone else around that age, [playing] with markers and crayons. (I think that’s why they put me in art school because they didn’t want the house in a mess.) There was nothing “art” about them at all. Until I found myself drawing in my free time without realizing it… My intention in my future career was to become a doctor or police [officer] when I got asked ” What-do-you-want-to-become-when-you-grow-up?” kinds of questions by my classroom teacher in grade one; therefore I am also surprised this has shifted to my major career today. However, this is what I found myself getting happiness out [of]. I want and would love to do more painting in my future because my “aha moment” was secretly live within me from the start. Even I did not realize it was happening; I had it in me all this time.
What’s next: University of Calgary. I am looking forward to fine art as my major, psychology as my options since my goal in the future is to become an art therapist.
Dream for the future: Art therapist
Keegan Karlsen, 18 
Graduated 2019, Bert Church High School
Talent: I would say my work can be hard to categorize sometimes, but I do believe that [it] covers many aspects like some cubism, a blending of realism and abstraction, some elements may also be surrealist, and my art form is mainly inspired by not only the human figure but what happens in the psyche of humans and how I can correlate this into my work as a physical representation of reality and life itself.
I use mainly graphite pencils and charcoal in my work but often like to play with coloured pencils and oil pastels.
Role models: I think my favourite painters have to be Francis Bacon, Pablo Picasso, Paul Cristina, Emma Hopkins, Joan Mitchell, Jean-Michel Blais, Mark Rothko and many others. But I’ve noticed now more recently that it’s not always the people who have the same mediums of creative expression that I do that influence me. I love reading poetry and intriguing stories, larger varieties of music, learning about science and life and mainly just observing the world around me, taking it all in, and using that towards my artwork.
Aha moment: As a kid I always saw myself being some kind of artist. When I was younger, I used to watch some of the in-the-makings or behind-the-scenes of cartoons and how the artists used to sketch out the story boards for the cartoons. I think as a kid that really inspired me to draw more because I loved seeing that process of a sketch into a full movie, and how an artist’s idea can come to life. I thought cartoons or comic books were going to be my thing, but upon moving out to Airdrie I started to focus more on what art was really doing for me. Art was my way of expressing myself and me being able to understand who I am and the world around me a bit better, making me move more towards the fine arts side of visual art. During my grade 10 year I saw how obsessive my habits of drawing became and I was starting to improve with my quality of work. So since I didn’t have any other idea of what I would do with my career in life, I thought that I wouldn’t just dip my toes into the art world, but completely dive head first and put everything I can into it. It’s something I am passionate about and hold very close to who I am and my ideas I have about life in general; I would love to do [art] for the rest of my life.
What’s next: I am going to be a part of AUArts as of September 2019, where I was given the honour of winning a full scholarship for the year.
Dream for the future: I spent most of my time as a high school student just drawing and trying to constantly come up with new and creative ideas. When working on my aspiration of being an artist, I do not want it to be some small little hobby for me. Art in itself is too important for me in trying to say what I need to say, that if it wasn’t something I did as my profession then I feel like I would almost be wasting my talent and understandings of who I am, what I am, and where I am in life. I would love to be able to be featured in galleries across the globe, not just collaborative but have some solos as well and be able to sell my work to the people who really look at it and try to find meaning in what they see. I want my work to be the mirror for people to look into themselves and into their own internal worlds (some would say souls), making them ask questions within their lives and venture out into more thought-provoking ideas that our lives consist of.
Annmarie Jeanveau, 19 
Graduated 2019, George McDougall High School
Talent: Dancing and various mediums of visual art. I have been a competitive dancer for 11 years and I started taking art classes when I was eight years old.
Role models: Watching the dancers I saw growing up at various competitions, workshops and conventions and seeing them reaching their goals and becoming professionals was a big inspiration and inspired me to work harder. Over the years and through my competitive dancing I’ve had the opportunity to work with some wonderful teachers who have taught me how to overcome obstacles and keep on going. Miss Stephanie, owner of Elements Dance Co. gave me a lot of first opportunities and believed in me and allowed me to grow not only as a dancer but a teacher and choreographer.
My art teacher Ms. Wright was a huge role model for me in the art world as she pushed me out of my comfort zone working with different media. She made me think hard as I had to work with my own images, and she helped me realized I had a real talent in art.
I want to thank both these ladies for everything they have done and taught me.
Aha moment: I never really had an “aha moment.” I just love what I do; I love dancing and art and most of my day is filled with both of these activities. Toronto has always been one of my top destinations so I’m following my dreams.
What’s next: I will be attending Centennial College in Toronto and obtaining a dance performance diploma while taking art classes at the Toronto School of Art.
Dream for the future: After I complete my dance program my hope is to sign a contract with a professional dance company or have the opportunity to be able to choreograph within the industry. Another goal would be to travel the world dancing on a cruise ship. In time I would also like to complete an art degree and perhaps from there either illustrate for Disney or have my work displayed.
Harley MacQueen, 17 
Graduated 2019, George McDougall High School
Talent: Creative baking/cooking
Role models: Bobby Flay
Aha moment: I’ve wanted to pursue in culinary since I was four years old.
What’s next: Attending SAIT in the fall for culinary arts.
Dream for the future: Become an executive chef in a high-end restaurant.
Cale Bonn, 18
Graduated 2019, W.H. Croxford High School 
Talent: Musician/producer
Role models: Jimi Hendrix and Eddie Van Halen and also Pharrell Williams, a Grammy Award-winning producer.
Aha moment: Our school band trip to Nashville in May 2017 when I had the honour to participate in a recording session in Elvis’s Studio ‘B’ in downtown Nashville. That’s when I realized that I wanted to become a music producer. Another aha moment when I realized that I wanted to pursue music as a career was when I had the honour to perform at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.
I was diagnosed with ADD when I was 11 years old. Music has always been the one thing at school that didn’t give me trouble. I never had to worry about doing well in music like I did with everything else. I want other kids to know that everybody has something they’re meant to do.
What’s next: I’m going to be going to the University of Lethbridge to continue my art education. Specifically, in the realm of becoming a producer.
Dream for the future: My dream for my artistic future is to impact the world of music in a big way and to become a Grammy Award-winning producer.
Julia Bleichert, 17
Graduated 2019, W.H. Croxford High School
Talent: I am a dancer/singer/actress/musician.
Role models: Lady Gaga. She was told she wasn’t good enough, wasn’t pretty enough, and wasn’t talented enough. She proved everyone wrong and has since won numerous Grammy Awards, American Music awards, and even an Oscar. She’s such a talented singer/dancer/actress/songwriter/musician, and never let negativity prevent her from pursuing her dreams.
Aha moment: I knew that I wanted to be a performer at my first ballet recital at the age of three.
What’s next: This summer I was part of The Young Canadians of the Calgary Stampede and danced in the Grandstand show Trail Blazer. I was also accepted into Storybook Theatre’s Student Summer Intensive Program and was cast as Eva in their production of Bring it On, the Musical, which opened in August. I will be dancing and singing again with The Young Canadians in the fall, as well as starting the audition process.
Dream for the future: My plans are a bit up in the air at the moment. We shall see where the audition process takes me.
