Describe a Creative Person Whose Work You Admire: IELTS Cue Card

I’d like to describe a street artist called Lina, who paints large murals in my city. She isn’t famous internationally, but locally a lot of people know her work.

I first came across one of her paintings about two years ago. There was a really depressing grey wall next to a bus station in the city centre, and one morning it was suddenly covered with this enormous, colourful picture of an old man feeding pigeons. I was so curious that I looked it up online, and it turned out she was a friend of my cousin, so I actually got to meet her briefly.

What’s special about her work is that she always uses real people from the neighbourhood as her models. The old man with the pigeons, for example, is someone who has sold newspapers on that corner for forty years. Before she starts a mural, she spends weeks talking to local residents to find out whose story she should tell. She also makes a point of using recycled or leftover paint from building sites, so her projects cost very little.

I admire her work for a couple of reasons. The first is that she transforms neglected, ugly places into something people actually stop and look at, and it changes the atmosphere of the whole street. The second is that her art is completely accessible. You don’t need to pay for a ticket or know anything about art to enjoy it. I think a lot of people feel that galleries aren’t really for them, and she brings art to them instead. To me, that’s creativity at its best.

Useful language:came acrossenormous, colourfulit turned outmakes a point oftransforms neglected placescompletely accessibleat its best

To a certain extent, yes. People may be born with different levels of imagination, but creative skills like brainstorming, experimenting and not being afraid of mistakes can definitely be developed. A lot depends on the environment; children who are encouraged to try things without being judged usually become much more creative.

Useful language:to a certain extentnot being afraid of mistakes

Not really, in my opinion. People enjoy music, films and design every day, yet many artists struggle to make a living, partly because so much content is now free online. Parents also often push children towards “safe” careers like medicine or engineering, which suggests creative work isn’t taken as seriously as it should be.

Useful language:make a livingtaken as seriously

Dramatically. Digital tools let anyone edit photos, make music or design graphics on a phone, so creativity is much more accessible than before. On the other hand, there’s a debate about AI-generated art, and whether it’s really creative if a machine does most of the work. I think technology is a powerful tool, but the original idea still has to come from a person.

Useful language:much more accessibleAI-generated arta powerful tool

I believe so. Subjects like art and music teach children to express themselves and solve problems in unusual ways, which are skills employers increasingly value. Unfortunately, they’re often the first subjects to be cut when budgets are tight. A balance is needed, but creativity shouldn’t be treated as a luxury.

Useful language:express themselvesbudgets are tighttreated as a luxury