the yes! effect - can one word change the world? yes!

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saying yes!

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about chase

I was born in Antwerp, Belgium, where I lived until I was 17. In Belgium, the education curriculum was pretty intense. If you did not develop a certain level of discipline and work ethic, it would be pretty hard to advance. At 13, I attended a very liberal performing-arts school, which allowed me to feed my passion for art. Although I’m almost entirely self-taught, I remember certain teachers really opening me up and introducing me to critical thinking. They helped me look at ideas and events from different angles, keeping an open mind and an investigative spirit. They really instilled in me the joy of learning.

When I was 16 or 17, pretty much everything in my life revolved around skateboarding and my love for it. Like everyone else, I dreamt of living in California with its endless summers and unbelievable skate-spots. A friend of mine =had already lived there, and after I visited him I convinced my pops that living in L.A. would not be that much more expensive than living in Belgium, especially since the dollar was really weak at that time. He helped me out until I graduated high school. After high-school I applied to some colleges, but soon found out that the tuition was 13 to15 times higher for foreign students than it was for Americans, which I definitely couldn`t afford! So I decided to stay in L.A. and teach myself how to paint, and with the help of my old roommate Marko from Sugar, I got into design and illustration using the computer. One thing led to another, and before I knew it I was living and working in Los Angeles.

Whenever I can, I enjoy using my talents to help kids pursue their dreams. I recently traveled to Minneapolis to support artbuddies.org, an organization that brings designers and artists together with underserved kids one on one. I painted a mural with groups of third, fourth and fifth- graders and had a chance to talk with all of them about the possibilities of creating a life filled with art and design. I believe this experience resonated with them, and hopefully encouraged them to look at the world around them in a different way.

I would love for education to inspire kids to keep an open mind, develop a sense of togetherness as world citizens, have a healthy work ethic, express an interest in problem-solving, and generally motivate them to discover what it is that they would love to do in life and then, in turn, provide the proper support-system in order to turn that passion into a reality.

If I had a message for others who are inspired by art it would be: Make sure that you are doing what you love to do. If you are, you will have a successful and happy life because of the joys of expressing your passions and connecting with people and the sharing of your ideas.