The BPHS Arts Fest is May 3 from 1- 4 p.m. Several art students will have their artwork featured, including senior Jesse Huber
Jesse Huber is one of the best artists this school has to offer. In fact, it is evident many see him this way, as Huber is the winner of one of the “Most Artistic” senior superlatives.
Huber’s copper tooling art, “Dragon” was featured in the April 7 bulletin.
During an interview, when asked what the inspiration behind the piece was, Huber said, “I think dragons are cool and I am also interested in fantasy.”
As previously stated, the dragon is made with copper tooling.
“Basically all you get with copper tooling is a sheet of copper and a wooden stick. You rub the copper with the stick and it creates friction and extrudes the copper, creating depth,” Huber explains.
“After that, you dip the copper into a liquid. When the liquid dries, it leaves black streaks on the entire thing. Finally I used steel wool to scratch the black parts, creating highlights and more even depth.”
But don’t be fooled, Huber does a lot more than just copper tooling.
“My favorite technique is probably sketching with just a mechanical pencil and a blank sheet of paper. It is my favorite because it’s the quickest way to draw ideas, and it sets a foundation for what I can improve on later when I decide to add color or make a final concept.”
But no artist can make anything without their studio, that’s why location is so important!
Where does Huber find the space to make his art?
“I make art either in my room, typically painting miniatures, or at school. I made artworks such as that copper dragon as a project for my art class called Science and Art, and I also make it throughout the day. I usually sketch ideas and stuff onto paper when I’m doing nothing in class. I also sketch small things in the margins of my notebooks. Lastly, I make art in Art Club.”
What is Art Club?
“Art Club is more of a social club that provides materials to do art while talking with friends. It provides materials to make cool things like stickers and pins. We also do some fun art activities with friends, such as exquisite corpse. That’s a game where a piece of paper is folded into three pieces. One person draws a head, someone else draws the body, and then a different person draws the legs. Then it’s fun to see the creature that was made.”
It seems as if a lot of Huber’s day is filled with art.
What age did he start drawing?
“I started really drawing in elementary school. I forget which year exactly, but I’ve done art for as long as I can remember. I used to sketch characters inspired by shows I watched, such as Dragon Ball Z.”
But what about drawing does he like so much?
“I enjoy sketching so much because it is my favorite way to express ideas or concepts in my head. I am much better at expressing myself and ideas visually with sketching than explaining it. It also allows me to bring my ideas to life.”
The high school offers many art classes, which ones, if any, has Huber taken?
“I took Digital Arts 1 and 2 and Art 1, and I am currently taking Science and Art. My favorite so far has been Science and Art because it is a two-period art class that gives more time to make high-quality artworks that I can finish on time. We get a lot of projects done in one school year.”
It seems as if Huber is quite experienced in the world of art.
What advice would he give to young artists?
“Just keep making art. I haven’t ever looked at any tutorials for how to draw or make art, I just learned over time as I kept drawing and making observations. I usually draw people or creatures, so I pay close attention to proportions. You just have to keep drawing more and more until you get better at it.”
In the future, Huber plans on majoring in Computer Science at the University of Pittsburgh, where he is fully committed. We wish the best of luck to him on his future education and art projects!
Here are some of his best works.
