My name is Sunniva Engum StJ Warrington. I am
14 years old and I go to the British International School of Stavanger. I am
half Norwegian, and half English. I speak fluent English, Norwegian and I am
currently learning French. So far I have lived in 6 different countries all
over the world. I was born in Oslo, Norway and I then moved on to live in the
following 5 countries; England, Scotland, Germany, Belgium, and Brunei. When I
lived in Belgium I spoke fluent French, however I lost the language as my
family didn’t speak French and my next schools were English.
Stavanger is located in the southwest region
of Norway. It’s a small city, but is very well known for being the centre of
the oil industry in Norway. It used to be renowned for its Norwegian sardines. Stavanger is almost always cold and raining, therefor,
good weather in Stavanger is rare and pleasurable. Stavanger is surrounded in
so many forests, lakes and mountains. There are several walking routes, and hikes.
It is also very close to Preikestolen also known as the pulpit rock. Stavanger is mostly cold all year round, but
there are occasionally warm summers and snowy winters.
I always wanted to have so many different
professions and my interests always changed. When I was younger I wanted to be
a lawyer, actress, doctor, soldier, leader in politics, athlete, writer,
journalist, artist, science researcher, film producer, and many more. I was
constantly learning of new jobs and careers. The options were endless. I didn’t
realize how interested and intrigued I was of science before the past few
years. My passion for the sciences, and math’s increased drastically. I also
discovered physics and astronomy, which are some of my favourite subjects. My
goal is to undertake my service to the army as a fighter pilot and engineer
(mainly aeronautics). This would be a major accomplishment, but in some ways I
see it as a stepping-stone to become my ultimate dream, an astronaut. Although
unrealistic, I have found, from my short life so far that if I am committed,
work hard, and don’t give up I can achieve my goals. The academic level of
competition is increasing every year, and knowing this makes me work harder. I
am mentally determined, yet prepared for both positive and negative outcomes.
I have many hobbies, interests and skills. I
like reading, exercising, writing, and painting. I used to live next a
professional artist. My brother and I are good friends with her daughter who is
about two years older than me. She is very talented and her pieces are
extremely inspirational. Most of the paintings I have seen by her are artistic
twists on landscapes. Sometimes realistic with all natural colours and extreme
details. Other times abstract colours are involved with different shapes and
patterns. I have also painted with her in the past where I learnt many new
skills and techniques. I looked through art books and read about new artist,
which gave me a chance to different and diverse art styles. The following
artists are some of my favourites. I find their style very fascinating and
compelling.
JP Meyer is a South African artist who
mostly does abstract work. His style has changed form his experience from
figurative to abstract. He goes into detail on his style, which he is, how his
experiences affect his art, and what he believes in on the Prince Albert
Gallery webpage (JP Meyer: http://princealbertgallery.co.za/artist/j_p_meyer/). I find the angle he paints from and the way he portrays the
contents of his paintings very metaphorical. There seems to be a deeper meaning
behind each painting, possibly related to his experiences or emotions.
Robert
Slingsby is another South African artist. He was always interested in art
since the age of 3. His exhibition of art works ‘crossing the line’ was
inspired by his travels to Ethiopia to several remote tribes. Slingsby was very
curious of the meaning behind rock art and cave paintings. He believed there
was a deeper concept fundamental to the art, and speaks of his research into
this topic in an interview at his studio (Robert Slingsby: http://www.artsouthafrica.com/220-news-articles-2013/2388-interview-robert-slingsby-in-the-artists-studio.html).
His pieces His paintings do appear to be molded by his experiences and travels.
Like JP Meyer they look to have a deeper meaning than what meets the eye. To
me, it seems to be what is most captivating about art. When a painting or piece
makes you think and wonder about a profound and masked significance. These are
often paintings inspired by true events or people, and are an interpretation of
the predicament or situation. In my observations, numerous artists create this
through use of colours, shapes and possibly even by juxtaposing images to give
a more detailed and broad image. A simple painting can have a powerful impact
on the state of mind, attitude or even opinion on certain topics.
I consider fitness and physical health very
important and see it as a vital key to attain a flourishing life. I believe it
impacts my mental ability and concentration. I have been a competitive swimmer
for several years. I learnt to swim at the age of 6, and practiced over the
years until it became a significant part of my life. At 14 I trained 13 hours a
week, before and after school and at the weekends. It was my best sport and
what I did to stay healthy and fit. The number of competitions and training
classes increased as I became better at swimming. I was very good and was given
the opportunity to move up to a higher competitive group, with more training
hours, and more competitions.
Following this path would mean I would be
focusing less on school and have swimming as my main priority. The competitions
and requirements would increase in swimming and eventually could become a
career. It was almost as if I was picking one or the other. Despite the fact
that I loved swimming, I didn’t see myself in the future as a professional
swimmer. I was good academically and had potential in that aspect too. I made
the decision to prioritize schoolwork as in my eyes it would create far more
reliable options in the future to come. I was upset having to give up my
competitive swimming, but knew it was for the best. I didn’t have time to
compete in all the swimming competitions and needed to drop down to another
swimming group which trained three times a week and had the option to compete.
During this time I kept my physical condition by exercising regularly at home,
running, weights etc. I have recently become interested in boxing, kickboxing
and the Israeli marshal arts, Krav Maga, and might also start the training
classes for these.
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