Have you ever dreamed of having your celebrity crush or favorite singer follow you back on Instagram? That happened to sophomore Dinda Lehrman, who got more than just a follow from her role model Tavi Gevinson, the founder of Rookie Mag, an online magazine for young feminists.
Back when she was a junior in high school, Lehrman drew a portrait of Gevinson and posted it on Instagram for her followers to see.
“I tagged her in it and she followed me and I got really excited. Then she messaged me and asked if I wanted to illustrate for Rookie Mag,” Lehrman said. “I was like, “˜Heck yeah!'”
Lehrman even got to meet Gevinson in person when she came to Austin for a 2015 talk on feminism in the Capitol Building.
“It was amazing and so adorable, and she is extremely intelligent,” Lehrman said.
Lehrman has not only illustrated for Rookie Mag, but she also publishes her own art in it. Her work varies from studio-based art and whimsical collages to ceramics, which she says are currently her favorite.
Lehrman also does mixed media works that combine photography, painting and collages. Her goal with collage art for Rookie Mag is to bring light to serious issues, for instance self-harm, and to attempt to bring beauty to the troubles of being a teenager.
Rookie Mag is known for covering deep topics that mainstream magazines aimed at similar audiences do not cover. Instead of focusing on shallow topics like current beauty trends or hottest celebrity males, Rookie covers a spectrum of more realistic topics, including how to improve your relationship with your parents and how to relieve stress in a healthy manner. This depth is one of the things that Lehrman admires about the project. Rookie gives young women a voice by allowing girls of all ages to submit their writings, photography, poetry or playlists “” another aspect of the online magazine that Lehrman loves.
Lehrman is currently working on her fourth collage set for Rookie. The theme of this month is “On The Verge” “” of something great, weird, bad or unique. She took photos of her friends and added bright shapes and colors to evoke the suspense that you feel when you are on the verge. The collage can be seen in Rookie later this month. You can also see more of her beautiful works on her Instagram account, @stars_shine_for_you.
Being a part of Rookie helped Lehrman realize that she has a gift, and she hopes to keep her art as original as possible. In the future, she aspires to go to graduate school at the Pratt Institute to earn a Master of Fine Arts degree. Eventually, she hopes to help other people through art, as it has been a great form of therapy for Lehrman.
