INTERVIEW CONDUCTED BY BENJAMIN K. PAPLHAM | ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Major: Art emphasis in Graphic Design
Title of Pieces in the Exhibition: “STAR BUCK” and “Cloud Abstraction Triad.” I also designed the wall vinyl and posters for this exhibition.
Why did you choose SNC?
I did a lot of searching online looking for different colleges and I came across St. Norbert College. I looked at what they had to offer and decided to go take a tour to help make my decision. After the tour I knew that this was the school for me, and I felt it fit my personality the best. It definitely was the best choice I made.
What do you hope to do after college?
I am not exactly sure what I want to do after college. I am hoping I will be able to secure a job with either a design agency or a perhaps a large company that has design positions with some department. However, I am very open to many different jobs in the art design field.
In what ways has SNC influenced your artwork?
I feel that SNC has helped me grow as an artist. When I first started college I wasn’t sure if I was good enough take my art to the “next level”. As I started taking my studio classes, I continued to grow more confident of my abilities as an artist. Now I feel like my art has a stronger foundation that allows me to create more interesting and engaging projects.
What art form did you use to create the pieces? Do you mind describing a bit of the process that was involved?
For STAR BUCK I used graphic design programs. I started off just drawing the idea of it in my sketchbook, traced it and then ultimately transferred it to my computer. From there, I added color and effects with Photoshop, to create this fun comical piece.
For “Cloud Abstraction Triad”, these groups of paintings are oil paintings that I created towards the end of summer. This theme is part of an ongoing study and experimentation of painting abstracted clouds. For these paintings, I started with taking some reference photos of clouds to give me ideas. Then I chose my color pallet and I began painting.
Why did you want to create the piece(s)?
I love puns, so making STAR BUCK was a super fun time. I was playing with words to try to think about what I should draw and eventually Starbucks came into my mind, which led me to make a deer with a cup of coffee appropriately called STAR BUCK. For the paintings, I wanted to create a really vibrant piece for my dorm room wall in the theme of my cloud series. The cloud abstraction paintings are some of my favorite paintings to make since I love working with lots of vibrant colors.
What was challenging about putting this artwork together?
The most challenging part about putting the artwork together was probably getting the exhibition ready. I had to order a frame for STAR BUCK, since I created it in an uncommon frame size. It required some help but I was able to get it done and there were not many issues at all.
Is there an artist that you wish people knew more about?
I feel that there are so many amazing contemporary artists doing amazing things, it is hard to just pick one. I really like Yayoi Kusama’s work. She is a Japanese artist who does polka-dot installations. They are super bright and fun. It is my goal one day to visit one of her installations soon.
Is there something you want to try that you haven’t yet as an artist?
I really want to try printmaking; I think it will be a really cool medium to explore. My STAR BUCK creations somewhat mimics a screen print, and I thought it would be an interesting challenge to try to recreate as a print.
St. Norbert Times 