Junior Julian Villegas-Toledo is an artist who has had a passion for art since he was a kid. His works consists of many different materials such as clay, cardboard, spray paint, paper mache, water paint, and so much more!

Growing up, Julian was really inspired to start his journey into art by watching his mom do her makeup. “Ever since I was a kid, I remember watching my mom do her makeup. I was really intrigued on all the products and colors. One day I even stole one of her lipsticks and started drawing with it.” He went on to say, “She realized I liked art, so she bought me my first Crayola kit. All elementary and middle school, I practiced a lot with different colors, designs, styles, etc. When I entered high school, I saw that they had an art class, but didn’t think much about it until the first day I saw the classroom and all the different projects displayed that motivated me to stay and ever since I’ve been in Ms Kimbley’s class.” Shortly after that, he was on his art journey!

Julian’s work takes “about a week” to plan and finish. Once he’s given a topic from Ms. Kimbley, he begins to brainstorm and research his art, and then proceeds to figure out the perfect materials he needs to use to create his awesome work!

How would Julian describe the work he creates? He says, “very diverse.” “Overall, I feel like my art is very diverse and I like to experiment, but I will say that I’m inspired by my family, currents events, new trends, my mood, and definitely other artists, but it all depends on the project and topic.” He’s still learning the new and different techniques in his art, but he doesn’t quite have a “set style.” If he had to describe it, he would say it’s “symbolism” and contemporary art.”

One of Julian’s favorite pieces he’s created would have to be his recent mask piece. “It’s a recreation of a mask done by Victoriano Salgado and represents Mexico in specific Michoacán, but also because this is one of the projects that have taken the longest and I was actually pretty satisfied with the product.”