PLAINVIEW – Working on class assignments in Wayland Baptist University’s graphic arts program continues to impact students whose artwork is earning recognition at competitions around the world. Evan Puckett is the latest student to have work selected for an international show.
Puckett, a senior from Plainview, had three pieces selected for the 12th Lessedra International Painting & Mixed Media Exhibition in Sofia, Bulgaria. Under the guidance of graphic design professor Dejan Mraovic, Puckett was working on sharpening his Photoshop skills with images focused on “comedic absurdity with an emphasis on the Wild West.”
Puckett’s artistic creations feature a gunslinger with an oversized revolver, a gargantuan chicken overlooking a western landscape, and a giant catfish with a muscular human physique.
“One of my main goals in life is to make people laugh and comedic work feels underrepresented,” said Puckett, who wasn’t sure what to think when he found out his work had been selected for the show.
“I kind of thought it was a joke,” he said. “The Lessedra art competition is a pretty prestigious competition. There weren’t a lot of Americans selected and out of them, I was the only student selected.”
All three of Puckett’s pieces will hang in the Lessedra gallery in Bulgaria until March 25, 2022. The show features the artwork of 115 artists from 33 countries. Of the eight other American artists selected, two are art professors and the rest are professional, exhibiting artists. Puckett’s art is classified as digital photo montage. Other artworks include paintings, drawings, photographs and mixed media pieces.
Puckett said he is glad and somewhat surprised that his first appearance in an art gallery is at an international competition.
“Most of the time, people’s first appearance in an art gallery is their college art gallery,” he said. “This is my first experience. I think that’s employable … don’t you?”
Puckett hopes to parlay his design skills in to a career as a graphic artist.
“I’m going to apply to as many graphic design places as possible and accept that one that will have me and pays the most,” he said. “I’ll do what people will have me do and hopefully be glorifying God in doing that.”
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