With plans to become a professional photographer, Luna Siesko, a rising senior in visual arts, has already generated an impressive portfolio of work, ranging from portraiture to landscapes to event photography. But Siesko knows that in order to succeed as an artist, in today’s world, that also means succeeding as a small business owner—promoting herself and her work in the marketplace.
For Siesko, a summer internship at the Baltimore County Arts Guild (BCAG) in nearby Catonsville provided a key opportunity to broaden her skills, expanding her background in social media, website posts, space management, and event planning, developing capabilities that she feels will ground her in the future. “I’ve always had this dream of having my own studio space, and some sort of exhibit space for my work,” Siesko says. “And so this internship has been really applicable to that—making sure that the space is managed and accessible, and everything is running smoothly.”
Young artists like Siesko who study in UMBC’s dance, music, theatre, and visual arts programs often choose to establish themselves as independent practitioners, whether performing on stage, creating artwork, or expressing their work in other ways. Siesko says this will allow her to continue doing what she loves: “I just really enjoy working with people and being able to capture how multifaceted people can be.”
Engaging the community in the arts
A special focal point of Siesko’s work this summer was promotion of BCAG’s Arts & Drafts Summer Music Festival, held at Guinness Open Gate Brewery in late June. “A lot of the work I’ve been doing for them I would consider to be outreach work,” Siesko shares. “So I’ve been making posts on their website and doing social media. And for Arts and Drafts, I voiced a video, a little commercial they made to promote the festival.”
Established in 2012, the non-profit Baltimore County Arts Guild fosters the arts throughout Baltimore County, and is also the managing entity of the Catonsville Arts District, which is centered along downtown Frederick Road. “Luna’s creativity always shines through in her work,” says Gloria Fajimolu, programs and events manager at BCAG, who supervised Siesko’s internship. “Throughout her internship, she’s engaged with clients for rentals, liaised with contractors, established connections with a myriad of businesses, and fostered collaboration with talented artists.She’s always exploring new ideas and growing, despite any challenges along the way.”
Two untitled portrait photographs by Luna Siesko, courtesy of Siesko.
On campus, Siesko has been able to hone her skills through work at commonvision, UMBC’s print and design center, where she has focused on event photography and videography—images of people on campus and signature events such as Homecoming and Quadmania, as well as helping film a promotional video for the Woolies at UMBC.
Looking forward to what comes next
Siesko gives a special shout-out to the Career Center, where she found her summer internship opportunity. “My first two years at UMBC I didn’t really go to any career fairs, because I wasn’t sure what I was looking for at all. But then I went to one to try to find an internship, and that was very helpful to me,” says Siesko, “and that’s how I am where I am now.”
After graduation next spring, Siesko plans to continue work as a freelance photographer, basing her work in the Baltimore area. “I’ve really fallen in love with the arts scene, and have met a lot of great people here,” she says. “I can’t imagine myself ever being too far away from Maryland.”
Tags: CAHSS, Career Center, VisualArts
