Sitting at the bistro in the library is a college art student unlike any other. Sure, he’s taking classes, student teaching and finishing up his degree but there are two things that set him apart; an AV Gold award and Best Fine Art award from Element Skateboards. And these are just from the first art contest he’s ever entered. Not bad huh?
This year was the first ever Element AV Awards. Element had the task of choosing from thousands of entries from all over the world in different subjects such as music, video, and art. The AV Gold award was given to Caleb for Best Overall Submission in all three categories and the Best Fine Art award for…well…best fine art.
“I’ve been in art shows before and sold some of my pieces, but it’s never been as exciting to actually win an international contest. I don’t even know what I’ll be getting yet, but to have won the award and have my name on their website is pretty amazing,” Jacks said.
The winning piece entitled, “Clarence Portrait to Penny,” was a piece that Jacks’ had already finished when he read about the contest. It seemed clear to him that it was “the one.” The piece was done in pen and ink in a cross section of wood, and like most art, it has a story of its own.
“It’s a story of a sailing squirrel named Clarence who, like most sailors, leaves for months at a time. Because of this, Clarence felt he should leave his lady squirrel, Penny, a portrait of himself to remember him by,” Jacks said.
Though animals are a common theme in Jacks’ work, people are too and in costume for that matter. According to Jacks’ everyone as a child wanted to be something they weren’t, and to Jacks, this isn’t a bad thing.
“Every kid imagines themselves as a pirate, ninja or G.I. Joe. It’s not a bad thing to imagine yourself as being something else, as long as it’s not someone else. People forget about that kind of thinking, you can get lost in working in a monotonous kind of world living nine to five,” Jacks said. “Art allows you to breathe and reminds you we’re human and we have minds that allow us to manipulate the real world and make it magical.”
For those interested in seeing more of Jacks’ work, myspace.com/mynameislub is the best way. Most of his art is posted there and if you are his “friend” you will be able to see bulletins telling of upcoming shows. Jacks’ also has two t-shirt companies he has started that can also be found there and at zozzle.com. As far as selling his art, Jacks’ says he does not list prices and if a person is interested they may contact him. More information about his Element wins can be found at Element.com.