Artist Profile: Philip Pochrzast
To some, Philip's painting might seem somewhat peaceful, with its neutral
color scheme and representation of nature. Philip chose trees as the subject of his
concentration, however, because of the chaos they represent. "No two trees are
alike," explains Philip, "each one is different and unpredictable." He also
finds trees fun to draw, which is just as well since in his AP class he created more than
19 different paintings of trees in various forms. Some were of trees in their natural
environment, like the one in the painting shown here, and others depicted trees being used
as telephone poles, firewood, and fences. For his medium, Philip chose oil paint sticks:
compacted oil paints in a crayon-type form that dry faster than regular oil paints.Philip has been interested in art since he was very young, taking sporadic art classes in drawing and other media. In high school he got really serious about his art and began developing and honing his skills. In his junior year, he won a summer scholarship to The Art Institute of Chicago; this helped prepare him for his AP class in the fall.
"It really got me organized," says Philip of his AP experience. "Before taking the class, I wasn't sure what would be expected of me in college, but this class helped me get going." And he got going, right off to the University of Illinois where he is now a Computer Science major, and an Art minor. He is currently enjoying his freshman year and even finds time to continue his seven-year-long interest in Tae Kwon Do. Eventually, Philip hopes to use his art background and his computer science degree to pursue a career in computer animation. In the meantime, he has just received a Recognition Award from NASA for his participation in an experiment about how paint reacts in space. One way or another, this gifted artist is shooting for the stars.
March 1999