What has gone from a blank canvas to a marbled blend of electric orange, yellow, green and blue will quickly become another painting added to the collection.
Upon first impression, the painting looks practically finished if the point was to paint something abstract. Yet it is still in the preliminary stages. For the artist, the vision for what the painting will look like has already been conceived and is now being executed.
“[It will be] a monster that is breaking through the subconscious,” said 18-year-old, art major, Oscar Rios.
For every work of art that Rios paints, there is a story behind it. His personal projects only highlight a portion of his life as an artist. But what truly distinguishes him as a person is his initiative and determination to create a lasting impact on campus through art.
Like his paintings, Rios’ story began in Aguascalientes, Mexico where he was born. At the age of seven, after he and his family received permission to move to the United States, they decided to move to California to seek a better life.
His interest in art began in high school after struggling to choose what courses to take. Debating whether to start preparing for law school or join the Air Force upon graduating, he was unsure of what he wanted to pursue. It wasn’t until one of his high school teachers recommended that he take an upper division art course that Rios discovered his passion for art.
“[After taking basic design] the professor recommended that I take an AP Studio Art class,” said Rios. “So I took that and then from there, she pushed me to continue making art and that’s when I chose to start studying art.”
As a fan of the Renaissance period, Rios is influenced by major artists such as Rembrandt and Titian. Yet his inspirations are drawn from his own experiences and observations.
“My inspirations when doing art come definitely from what I see everyday,” said Rios. “Some actions can inspire me to think of certain compositions that I would want to create.”
As someone who describes himself as childish because of his humorous persona, but also serious when it comes to his work, for every work of art that he either draws or paints there is a meticulous process behind it.
“The first thing I think about is what I’m going to paint,” said Rios. “If it’s going to be something that’s realistic, I could either draw it on tracing paper and then transfer that to a canvas. Or if it’s something that I want an exact image of, I project the image on the screen and then just draw it on the canvas. If it’s something from my mind, I would just freehand it on the canvas, but look at things that I would use as references.”
Being a student, an artist, and a brother are just some of Rios’ roles, but in every aspect of his life, there is no denying that art is a major part of it, according to his older sister Teresita Rios.
“He puts a lot of effort and time into creating his pieces,” said his sister. “He is usually in his room for days and you can just hear the brush on his canvas. He has a lot of attention to detail and it proves the amount of effort and time he spends in each piece because he puts himself into it and it shows.”
Since coming to Moorpark College, Oscar has been solely focused on two things: getting good grades and doing art. In fact, just last semester his decision to start an art club on campus has already proven to be a success.
Just recently, one of the club’s major projects has been pre-approved. Although the club still needs to get full approval before starting their project, the club hopes to start painting their mural -the Super Mario Level 1-1 World- for the game design room as soon as possible.
For game design and multimedia professor Tim Samoff, his hope is that the mural will have a positive impact.
“I think this mural is going to be a great addition to the classroom,” said Samoff. “I think adding a splash of color, a large painting that allows people to instantaneously see what our philosophy is is going to really do a lot to inspire both students and any visitors alike to get into the mood of making and playing games.”
Although not every member of the club will be involved in the painting of the mural, Rios hopes that the mural will create a lasting impact, especially for those who will be involved in the creation of it.
“I want to give the muralists a chance to paint on a large scale and see what it’s like to paint with other people,” said Rios.
As the president of the MC Art Club, Rios constantly works to uphold the club’s mission to foster a community of artists and their shared love to create art.
“I am constantly amazed by how dedicated he is to the club,” said professor of art history and art appreciation Lydia Etman, one of three advisors to the club. “Oscar is extremely active in the club and well organized.”
Despite being only in his second semester of college, he has already thought about what he hopes his legacy will be post graduating.
“The legacy that I want to leave here per say would be definitely the mural,” said Rios. “And just too build connections with some of the professors here and come back and do an artist talk later.”