宾州州立大学阿宾顿分校 sophomore Orest Luzeckyj impressed 利文索尔邦妮, 艺术教授, with his creativity and the intricate details he incorporated into his woodblock prints.
阿宾顿,爸爸. — Orest Luzeckyj spends his Fridays in a sunny room in the Rydal Building at 宾州州立大学阿宾顿分校 creating meticulously detailed woodblock prints of creatures conjured from his imagination. Last spring, his first course toward a minor in 艺术 ignited a consuming interest in printmaking that has temporarily supplanted drawing and painting as his primary 艺术 practice.
“我一直在画这些角色, but now I was able to reproduce them multiple times and play around with the color and composition. It came so naturally to me, and it opened a whole new world,” the sophomore said.
他解释说 利文索尔邦妮, the 艺术教授 who taught the course, loved his first effort.
邦妮给了我很大的鼓励. She gives her students very few limitations, and she wants us to explore. Bonnie must see something in me, and it motivates me to see her confidence in me,” Luzeckyj said.
Levinthal calls his work extraordinary and said his output in the last six months outpaces that of any other student she has taught over the years.
“He’s so unassuming, and he is industrious, very self-directed, innovative, and highly creative. His work is so unique, and it reminds me of Maurice Sendak. 细节令人难以置信，”她说.
去年春天课程结束的时候, Luzeckyj asked Levinthal about the types of wood and ink she would recommend for printmaking.
"I sent him information and midway through summer he showed me these incredible prints. I told him he needed to continue this work through an independent study,” she said.
Luzeckyj has a small supply of wood left — he favors Japanese maple, which “cuts like butter.” He is wrapping up his work with woodblock printing for now. He wants to focus on large-scale drawings and paintings, especially after finding that printmaking has refined his skills.
“Printmaking has given me discipline and problem-solving skills. Every block that I make, there are a hundred drawings that I do before to perfect the images. Painting and drawing are more like improv, but woodblock requires a level of discipline. 这是计划好的，”他说.
宾州州立大学阿宾顿分校 sophomore Orest Luzeckyj's work is inspired by experiences from his childhood, such as watching a favorite animated television show, reading "Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak, and examining his family's collection of 艺术 by a noted Ukrainian printmaker.
The mythical creatures that populate Luzeckyj's 艺术work have been a staple since childhood.
“我一直喜欢画怪物. I built my skills by drawing mostly from my imagination. 我的灵感来自一个叫“啊”的电视节目!!! Real Monsters’ and by Maurice Sendak’s ‘Where the Wild Things Are,’” he said.
Luzeckyj’s Ukrainian heritage also plays a role in his 艺术. He plans on creating a series of woodblock prints featuring Ukrainian soldiers past and present with the proceeds benefitting the war-torn country.
“My parents have collected prints for years by Jacques Hnyzdovski, a Ukrainian woodblock 艺术ist. There are similarities to my work just because I grew up surrounded by them,” he said.
While he finishes his independent study of printmaking this semester, Luzeckyj is contemplating his options for the future.
“I’m confident that I’ll keep creating, even after I earn my business degree. I might work and spend my free time creating 艺术 or go full time with 艺术. I can apply my 艺术 to my business degree and vice versa,” he said.
关于宾大阿宾顿
宾州州立大学阿宾顿分校 provides an affordable, accessible and high-impact education resulting in the success of a diverse student body. It is committed to student success through innovative approaches to 21st-century public higher education within a world-class research university. 有3个以上,100名学生, 宾州州立大学阿宾顿分校 is a residential campus that offers baccalaureate degrees in 25 majors, 本科研究, 施赖尔荣誉学院, NCAA三级田径和更多.
