Spotsylvania native and Massaponax High School alumna Asia Rorick is one of four finalists in the “I Voted” sticker contest presented by the Richmond Office of Elections in collaboration with the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Rorick’s illustration of a civic-minded opossum filling out a ballot could be the featured image on stickers handed out at Richmond polling locations during the November general elections.
Rorick graduated from Massaponax in 2014 and went on to earn a fine arts certificate from John Tyler Community College before transferring to Virginia Commonwealth University.
“I’ve always been an art kid,” Rorick wrote in an email to the Free Press. “I used to make picture books in class and draw the historical figures we’d learned about that week in social studies.”
Now a full-time VCU student and Richmond resident, she said she treasures her memories of hanging out at the Central Rappahannock Regional Library’s Snow Branch and Salem Church Branch after school and quiet peaceful drives through the woods.
Books and the natural world influence her subject matter. Rorick recalls a childhood full of exploring the outdoors looking for insects and snakes under rocks and walking to the river behind her house.
Rorick is a fan of Chilean illustrator Fran Meneses (Frannerd) and how “she balances positivity and grief. She feels so relatable and human. She did an ‘Ugly Sketchbook’ project (video, website) several years ago, which embraced the ideas of imperfection and exploration in sketching and had a big influence on how I approach drawing now.”
Rorick is an active member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and is already pursuing freelance work. “I’m also eager to get back into gardening after graduation,” she writes.
“I hope that the Richmond Office of Elections does this project again in the future, as it seems like a great way to connect with local creatives. It seemed like a cool and unique opportunity to have my artwork on the sticker that everyone (or maybe just me lol) loves to get when they vote!”
Cast your vote for the 2024 “I Voted” sticker by clicking here. Voting is open until May 1.
