A self-proclaimed “jack-of-all-trades” when it comes to art, senior Nick Stahl is, surprisingly, a very recent convert to the studio art major. In the true Lawrence fashion, majoring in biology with a concentration in neuroscience and a minor in psychology is simply not enough for this week’s featured artist. “I realized that if I also wasn’t doing art next to my science, I wasn’t happy,” he said. “I have two sides of myself that I need to continuously nurture.”
Naturally, all of these academic and artistic pursuits create a constant juggling of schedules – labs versus studio class – for Stahl. But somehow, he seems to manage it all, and with impressive results. Stahl is currently working on a number of projects, ranging from an honors project in art, to the design for this year’s International Cabaret, to digital media slides for the upcoming LUJE concert, to the experimental films he is creating for his digital processes class this term. I saw one of them at last week’s Director’s Cut Film Festival – it was awesome. In other words, he’s keeping busy.
More often than not, an art major will choose one area in which to specialize, but not all that shockingly, Nick Stahl defies convention once again and declares that he simply cannot pick a favorite. Though his current focus is on sculpture – look for his work around campus this spring – Stahl also professes his love for pretty much everything else. “I enjoy working with wood and water; those are my primary elements. I also like incorporating fabrics into my sculptural pieces as well. … Other mediums I enjoy include watercolor, ceramics, wood carving and new media like digital photography and experimental film.”
As for the possibility of art factoring into his future, Stahl said, “If my future plans didn’t [include art] I’d be doing myself a disservice.
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