Stay Home And Create: Nessa Dziemian Rallies Athlete Artists in Instagram Challenge
As we approach mid-April with most of the country, and the world, in self-isolation for more than four weeks now, channeling excess time and staying connected can feel like a challenge. U.S. Moguls athlete Nessa Dziemian has called on her fellow athletes and friends to join her in a month-long drawing challenge via Instagram. Although she and her teammates can’t physically be together, through art and technology they are able to still create a sense of shared community.
Nessa has used art as an outlet during both of her knee surgeries, so when the stay at home order was put into effect, she knew what a large portion of her time would be devoted to. “I asked people to send me requests for drawings,” she explained. “People were specific with what they wanted to draw. And I morphed those into prompts that were a bit more generic so that other people could do it with me.”
Several U.S. teammates—Olivia Giaccio, Tess Johnson, Jesse Andringa, and Jaelin Kauf—are joining Nessa in her artistic conversation. Canadian mogul skier Maia Schwinghammer and Great Britain mogul skier Leonie Gerken Schofield are also participating. “It’s cool to have skiers all over the world doing [this],” said Nessa. “We’re all constantly talking about the challenge, about the art, how we got that idea, how we like each other's pieces. There are about 10 people I'm talking to on a regular basis. That exchange every day with so many people is important. It’s cool because it’s opening up those lines of communication.”
To celebrate creativity off the snow, U.S. Ski & Snowboard asked Nessa to create a series of drawings celebrating our athletes. These drawn-on photos are whimsical in nature and tailored to each athlete’s personality. “My goal with my art is to make people laugh; make people feel good,” she explained. “You work so hard for that award or that trick, I wanted to animate on that but still be consistent with their style.”
We will be rolling out Nessa’s pieces across our social channels this month. To join Nessa in her April challenge, check out her personal account @nssdzmn. You can find her art and more goodies on her artist page @minty_orange.
Art by Jaelin Kauf
Art by Olivia Giaccio
Art by Tess Johnson
Art by Jesse Andringa
