2026/27 Merit Scholarship Recipient: Rocky Golightly

Why did you decide to come to MCAD?

Honestly...to escape--I grew up in a small town in Iowa which was heavily isolating. I did not feel welcome with the person I am currently. I had a lot of mental issues and familial trauma. In truth I ran away, with a goal to uncover who I truly am; MCAD has progressed me in that sense.

How/why did you choose your area of study?

Upon deciding that I wanted to pursue art as a career/field of secondary education; I chose to stick with what I have always done. When I first applied to MCAD I planned on pursuing just a drawing degree because the program was still divided between drawing and painting. To my surprise I took "intro to painting" and decided that this was much more difficult than what I already knew. Sure, I have used acrylics a few times for random art assignments but I had scarcely touched oils let alone used colors that were not pre-mixed. Now within a semester or two with a lot of hard work and devotion to my practice. I was able to obtain this scholarship; I was able to make my mark.

Favorite thing about college life (so far)?

Community! I did not expect to see so many freaks like me upon going to college but if you think you are weird, it definitely gets weirder. Regardless of who you are, there will always be people for you!

Describe the work you submitted for merits.

Work that I submitted centered around my desire to tap-in to a child like wonder within myself. With the use of saturated colors, subjects that were living, technique, and the use of my crochet borders--I am able to create work that is reflects the sentimental nature which I was chasing so dearly.

What's next for your practice? Anything you're really excited to make?

Not to nerd out about art, but I have been doing a lot of live model drawing and I am just obsessed with dramatic light and shadow and how the texture it creates on skin. I have been using my body to make art from observation but it is always easier with a model that is not yourself. I would like to create from other models which I am finding opportunities to do around the twin cities!

What inspires your creative self?

Honestly my self in general, I am not a narcissist or egotistical but there is only one of me in this world. No one can create art of me in the same way I can or my art in general because I am uniquely me. At the end of the night you are just you, and that is more than enough; use it to your benefit!

What's the best thing you've found on the Free Shelf?

20-30 canvases/stretcher bars and a copy of 1984 by George Orwell.

Lastly, do you have a favorite question we didn't ask? Tell us and answer it!

How many times have you fallen while walking on the ice during winter? However many days are in a semester multiplied by at least three.

Rock Golightly, Vulnerability Inhibited by Fear and Doubt