Students living in UW’s residence halls had the opportunity to show their creative sides in an art show that took place Sunday in the basement of the Washakie Dining Center which highlighted many of their creative works.
Some of the art on display included painting, photography, jewelry, and crochet. For many students, it was their first opportunity to share their artwork with an audience.
“I never get to show my art anywhere else so it was kind of a cool opportunity,” freshman Katie Schabron said. “I don’t really use any social media so it was kind of fun.”
Schabron said she was inspired to start painting and drawing by her family, and has been painting for almost ten years.
“My mom loves art and she kind of got me into it,” Schabron said. “My parents always supported me, they bought me art supplies and encouraged me to get better.”
The landscapes Schabron painted were inspired by places she has lived and visited, like Estes Park in Colorado and the state of Alaska.
Additionally, Schabron sells earrings at the Bent and Rusty, a craftsmen’s cooperative in downtown Laramie which allows artists and craftsmen to sell their work.
Other students like Luke Howell showed off the process behind their work, with a sketchbook detailing the planning and sketching of the final pieces on display.
The personal meaning behind one of Howell’s works is about personal growth.
“I had the idea that if you want to become a better person, you have to be willing to get rid of who you are right now and be willing to change,” Howell said.
Howell has also begun to explore different art forms, including digital art.
“I like pencil and mechanical, but recently in the past year or two I’ve gotten into digital and I like that a lot,” Howell said. “[Digital art] feels like it’s cheating sometimes because it makes things so much easier, but when some things are easier you can do so much more.”
Howell’s digital work combines the contours of a face with a grid pattern, using himself as a reference.
Freshman Jack Bailey has also been exploring new mediums of art. Baile presented paintings and pastel drawings during the art show.
“It was kind of out of nowhere,” Baile said. “I use soft pastels and I hadn’t started using them until last year, and then when I did I kind of fell in love with them, I really liked them.”
Baile began painting in high school and has participated in a number of different art shows including this one.
Each piece took Baile between 10-15 hours to complete. According to Baile, the hardest part of each piece is the planning process which comes before.
“For each piece it doesn’t take as long [to make] as it takes to plan it. The planning process is much longer,” Baile said.
For residents who normally would not have shared their artwork with the public, the art show was a chance to display their creative process in a relaxed environment with their peers.
After the main art show, an episode from the popular painting show “Bob Ross: the Happy Painter” was played and residents were able to paint along with the video.
