Moravian art education major Alex Ho ‘27 has a ballpoint-pen drawing of a wasp nest hanging in the Lehigh University Art Galleries (LUAG) through May 22, 2026, but the real story is how that delicate web of ink grew out of a full-blown life pivot. 

Two years ago, while studying drafting at Lehigh Carbon Community College, Ho picked up a pencil for the first time in years.

“I found solace in creating, something I hadn’t done in years,” he said. 

Sketching in coffee shops, reading soul-feeding books, and questioning his path, he asked himself, “Why did I pursue what I think others think is best for me? Why can’t I pursue something that gives me comfort? Is it foolish to believe I can make a career of art?”

The questions led to action. He switched his major to Fine Studio Art and took a job as a gallery assistant at the Glass Box Gallery. The hardest part of this switch was telling all of his friends and family that he was switching career paths from something in high demand to something looked down upon. 

“You’ll just about give anyone a confused look if you tell them you’re pursuing Art,” he said. “Fortunately, I worked hard enough to turn those confused faces into astonished ones when they saw my artwork.” 

Under professor Jeremy Seidt’s mentorship, opportunities kept appearing, but his belief lagged behind. Seidt coached him that if Ho wanted to, he could make his career passion a reality.

 “To my dismay, I never believed him until I applied for the 100 Year Artist Exhibition about a year ago. I was in shock to find my work accepted,” Ho recalls. 

Out of more than 300 applicants from the Lehigh Valley, he was chosen as one of 100 artists to exhibit.

“When I had entered this piece, I was but an aspiring artist.”

His featured piece, “Wasp Nest Still Life,” is a detailed ballpoint rendering of a wasp nest. He loves delving into all kinds of textures, but recently has been mesmerized by the smooth texture of marble and stone.

“It’s also a piece I’ve come to enjoy gazing into,” he said. “The values are of my best range, in shadow and light, and the texture makes it feel like you could run your hand through and feel the delicacies of the subject.”

Offers followed, scholarships to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, but Alex chose Moravian, determined to give back to the teachers who nurtured him.

“We are already artists; it’s in us all, the human mind, to create and to put love into the world. To pursue what may seem impossible,” Ho said. “Somewhere along the way, we just stopped believing in ourselves; we listened to those voices of doubt in our heads.”

After graduation, he plans to work as an art teacher before pursuing his master’s degree in education to continue showing youth the value of creativity and self-expression.

“I want others to love their passion the way I learned to love mine,” he says. “We’re all already artists. We just have to stop doubting ourselves.”

Before illustration, Ho draws what’s in front of him. 

“The motivation is the most genuine for me because it’s instinctive when I choose a subject; whatever feels right, I go for it.”

Although a ballpoint pen can be unforgiving, Ho accepts the mistakes and embraces the failures. One of his biggest life lessons is to keep moving forward despite the setbacks. 

“Sometimes the mistakes evolve into something that I wouldn’t have run with if it didn’t happen; this is the beauty of imperfection,” Ho said.