Henderson artist is part of first You Tube training program at USC

With her hands itching to draw and paint and her video camera eager to capture her in action, Lauren Nash creates two pieces of art -- one on canvas and one on her YouTube channel, Transient Art.

"I'm bringing together a traditional art with a modern art," Nash said.

Since she was 10, Nash has experimented with acrylic paints, pastels and charcoal to transfer the visions in her head and inspirations around her onto a blank, white canvas.

Nash, 21, decided to create her YouTube channel in 2008 after moving to Henderson to show herself in action and explain the emotions that go behind each stroke and color.

"It started out with just family and some friends as subscribers," Nash said. "It wasn't until 2010 I started to take it more seriously."

With a change in dedication, Nash searched for opportunities to enrich her YouTube skills and discovered the first YouTube Creator Institute.

Bing Chen, who oversees YouTube c reator i nitiatives and p roduct m arketing, said the institute sought YouTube artists, whether they be filmmakers, chefs, musicians or traditional artists, and helped them hone their video skills.

"We sought two types of people," Chen said. "We sought people interested in learning about new media and those already engaged (and using YouTube) but may not be advanced in their skills."

The idea developed in November 2010. This past spring, YouTube promoted the Creator Institute with the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts as its official partner.

Chen said YouTube targeted film schools and clubs, along with everyday YouTube followers.

As part of the application process, the online community voted for the most creative channel and who should win the opportunity .

Nash said there also were two essay questions that asked her about her channel and her hopes for it .

Ten people, including Nash, were identified from hundreds of candidates to go to USC for the training.

"She is very original -- not just as an art teacher but in the way she tells a story visually," Chen said in reference to her videos.

The four-week seminar was free and allowed the artists to learn more about production, successful promotion approaches, lighting and other tricks for a successful channel.

"At its core, this was an educational program," Chen said. "It really wasn't just for filmmakers. It had opportunities for all types of artists."

The institute included presentations and seminars from screenwriters such as Melissa Rosenberg, who produced the screenplay for the "Twilight" series; McG, a director and producer of television shows such as "Chuck," "Supernatural" and "The O.C."; and YouTube star Freddie Wong, who has almost 2 million subscribers and more than 300 million views on his channel, FreddieW.

"I watch FreddieW," Nash said. "It was cool to get to interact with him."

Nash returned to Henderson on information overload yet excited to use her new ideas to enhance her channel.

"I really learned about the production process," Nash said.

Before, Nash would stare at the camera and press "record" to document her art .

Seeing that there is more to the filmmaking process, Nash is ready to entertain.

"Instead of just speaking directly into the camera, I want to make it a more interesting story," Nash said.

Nash decided to devote more time to her craft and has scheduled a new video, and piece of art, each week.

The task is daunting because Nash is her own director, producer, film editor and star. But she hopes to rise to the challenge.

In addition to her weekly videos, Nash wants to produce art tutorial videos and answer art questions.

At press time, Nash had 465 subscribers, more than 50 videos and had 52,298 channel views.

"I am really excited it has grown," Nash said. "But it was never about how many viewers I can get. I would rather have 10 dedicated viewers who get something out of it than just to have millions of viewers."

People can watch Nash at t ransientart.com or at youtube.com/user/transientart .

Contact Henderson and Anthem View reporter Michael Lyle at mlyle@viewnews.com or 387-5201.