For many students, art is a class to secure a credit. For artists, art is a way to express themselves however they please and showcase emotions like happiness and anger. Whether it be painting or styling hair, it is an outlet that helps one particular student express his or her individuality.

Art is not just a class for junior Justus Garfield. In his eyes, art is a powerful way to inspire others and express creativity, not just to secure a good grade in school, but to prove his skill to his peers and family. Garfield has already found his favorite mediums in unique materials like hair dye and gloves.

Garfield has been styling hair for several years and does not limit himself to the standard idea of art. Starting as a fun activity, styling and dying hair was something Garfield always found as an interesting way to pass time. However, as he continued this activity, Garfield he it more enjoyable and made extra time in his day for it.

“I started doing hair as something fun but I fell in love with it,” Garfield said. “At first I started practicing with my mom and I branched out to doing more for my family and friends.”

Artistic creativity in Garfield’s life even helped him find the path he wants to embark on in the future. Throughout the years, as he kept working with hair, Garfield found his true interest to be in cosmetology.

“I found out I wanted to do cosmetology. I would go into salons with my mom and play with all the equipment. My next step is to graduate high school and get into a cosmetology school,” Garfield said.

Garfield takes several art classes at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, including Ceramics 1, 2-D Studio, Art 3 Honors and Art 2. His involvement in the school does not stop there, as Garfield is an active member of the National Art Honor Society (NAHS) and assists Jacqueline Lieberman, one of the art teachers, when he can by helping his peers. However, art is not limited to school for Garifield, he brings all of these skills home and loves to pursue art in other ways.

“The more you work on your techniques, the better you become and I think it comes naturally to Justus since he sincerely enjoys doing art,” Lieberman said.

Many of his ideas, Garfield claims, come from Tim Burton–an individual well known for his crazy, out-of-this-world ideas in cinematography. Creating films like “The Nightmare before Christmas,” Burton does not allow any theories of art to define his creativity; similarly, Garfield produces art to express his imagination.

Garfield has accomplished a lot while practicing cosmetology. He has a solid group of friends that allow him to experiment on their hair, an opportunity he has taken advantage of to make the most of what is readily available to him by dying their hair whenever possible.

“I started pursuing art to help express my creativity and inspire others around me,” Garfield said.

In between school and his hobbies, Garfield enjoys spending time with his family, which includes his mother and his four siblings as well as his friends. He also has a job at Dunkin Donuts located close to the school.

Garfield wants to inspire his peers through his creativity and art. At the moment, he is only doing hair for family and friends, but wants to share his craft with the people around him. Garfield wants to expand his passion and hopes to one day open his own studio. His next step in the near future will be cosmetology school.