During the opening reception for Allan Hancock College’s annual Fine Arts Student Art Show, featured artist Victoria Alvarez tried her best to remain incognito while casually browsing at her own display, hoping to overhear candid comments from the public—unclouded, honest opinions not colored by her presence. She noticed two women in particular, in the middle of discussing one of her digital steampunk paintings.
“As I was quietly acting like an observer myself, it was fascinating hearing them talk about the complimentary colors that were used, the layout of the abstract shapes—how they looked confusing, but extrinsic as well,” Alvarez told the Sun. “I was quite honored.”
Alvarez is one of more than 50 featured students in the showcase, which is currently on display in the Ann Foxworthy Gallery through March 13. The exhibition highlights a diverse range of media from Hancock’s various fine arts programs, including painting, drawing, photography, graphic design, ceramics, and—Alvarez’s area of expertise—digital arts. Finding concepts to fill the space of her digital paintings is rarely a struggle, the artist said, describing her inspirations as almost involuntary.
“I can never just drive down a road or the freeway without imagining some type of giant creature climbing over the hills, or mutated spiders crawling into town,” Alvarez said. “My imagination never stops. I literally sleep with a sketchbook next to my bed, just in case I wake up with an idea.”
Most of Alvarez’s artwork can be described as fantasy or science-fiction driven, she said, while also straightforwardly political in some cases. One of her digital pieces, for example, depicts a sea turtle wearing a gas mask. The ocean surface above is muddled with pollution, and a blunt caption below reads in all caps: “YOUR CHOICE.”
Global cautionary tales aside, Alvarez also hopes her work brings encouragement to individuals who have suffered traumatic circumstances similar to her own. Less than a year before enrolling in the fine arts program at Hancock in 2019, Alvarez was diagnosed with a brain aneurysm after several extreme headaches. Within a week, she was being prepped for surgery.
“I was only supposed to be in the hospital for two days, three at max. Unfortunately, I had a stroke the night of my surgery, and I was not able to go home for 14 days, after completing my rehabilitation,” Alvarez said. “I had to learn how to walk, talk, and smile all over again. It was a tough journey, but I refused to give up.
“I want to show others that no matter how hard recovery can be, all things are possible,” she added, “as long as you believe, and don’t let anyone tell you that ‘you can’t!’”
Although a lifelong creative, taking required fine arts courses at Hancock while majoring in animation was Alvarez’s introduction to digital painting, which became one of her favorite media.
“To be honest, I never knew that digital painting even existed, until I took the class with Mrs. Thomas,” Alvarez said. “She taught me and other students so much of what you could do with digital painting in Photoshop. She wouldn’t hesitate to bring challenges to my attention, but I appreciated every single one of them.”
Not only is Laura-Susan Thomas an instructor in the school’s fine arts department, she’s also the director of the Ann Foxworthy Gallery. A longtime enthusiast of Hancock’s Student Art Show, Thomas appreciates the exhibition most for the joy it brings to the students involved.
“Having their work displayed and validated is such a wonderful feeling for our students and it shows in the energy and excitement in the room,” Thomas told the Sun, describing the mood of the exhibit’s opening reception at the end of January.
Reflecting on changes made to the annual exhibit over the years, Thomas discussed a gradually growing inclusion of digital arts displays in the showcase.
“Probably the biggest evolution in the last few years has been the advent of digital art and our ability to showcase the digital arts alongside our traditional arts,” Thomas said. “We have monitors, projection, and even augmented-reality components to some pieces that we can display.
“As we look to next year’s show,” she added, “the gallery hopes to also showcase some of our dance and music student work as well, either displayed or as a pop-up event during the exhibition.”
Arts Editor Caleb Wiseblood is sticking with the turtle. Send gas mask funds to cwiseblood@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Feb 20-27, 2020.
