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WHAT'S YOUR SIGN?
KANSAN.COM | THURSDAY, NOV. 5, 2015
Aries (March 21-April 19) Resolve practical work details. Long-term efforts begin to bear fruit. Tend
them carefully. Watch your step and avoid risky business. Strengthen your partnerships and teamwork
Find your heart in your work. Feed your passion to advance.
Taurus (April 20-May 20)
Fantasies prove flimsy. Stick to steady ground, and emphasize fun. Something you try doesn't work. Be patient with a resister. Don't make assumptions. Enjoy family and friends. Teamwork is a given. Pool your resources and celebrate
Gemini (May 21-June 20)
Home and family draw you in. Imagine what you want, and provide leadership.
Create and renovate. Play with color and textures.
Inspiration comes from afar. Delegate to specialists.
Clean messes, and feed your worker bees. Time outdoors refreshes.
Cancer (June 21-July 22)
Study, writing and research
Roy Dresner facts you know
Sam Balbuena, University student and artist, says his family is the main source of inspiration in his work
VICKY DIAZ-CAMACHO/KANSAN
now. Prioritize racks over fluff. Welcome contributions from others. Get creative to improve your pitch. Your influence and clout are rising. A change at work puts more coins in your pocket.
ABOVE, "BOOM", DETAIL; BELOW, A SCULPTURE/SAMUEL BALBUENA
Upgrade technology.
Leo (July 23-Aug. 22)
Cash flows in. Avoid spending it all, and avoid distractions and arguments Discover something about a person you thought you knew. Consider a new view. Major obstacles are past. This could be a lucky break
Grab an opportunity.
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)
It's getting easier to advance. You're getting stronger. Call in your best players. Don't rush. Consider a new style. Neatness counts. Wait to be sure what's wanted before attempting to provide it. Persistence produces
lucrative results.
Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)
Your dreams can inspire a change for the better.
Peaceful solitude entices.
Enjoy tranquil productivity.
Postpone meetings and social life. Finish old projects. Clear space for what's coming. Reflect on the past and imagine a future you'd like.
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) Ignore distractions, if you have a deadline. Hide out, if necessary. Otherwise, get out and get social for some fun. You can find what you need in your networks and communities. Work together.
er and get farther.
of power.
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Professional challenges require your attention. Handle with minimum expense. Tempers can spark. Avoid waste or overconsumption.
Go for moderation. Get advice,but make your own decisions.Face to face interactions produce great ideas.
Relax and listen.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)
Focus on finances with your partner. Neglecting this comes back to bite you. You don't have to agree on everything. Work out common ground. Share your vision.
Provide leadership. Shift objections through gentle persuasion. Romance your competitor.
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)
Someone is willing to share your load. Don't try to do everything yourself. Rely on partnership. Give back, too. Get others involved and learn new tricks. It may not look as expected. It could be much better.
much better.
RYAN MILLER
@Ryanmiller_UDK
Most of his paintings are large-scale images of a human face with abstracted colors or shapes. His emphasis, however, is in sculpture, and his theme is wooden boats.
Every day, Samuel Balbuena,
a senior from Wichita, is in his
studio at Chalmers Hall from
around 9:30 a.m. until almost
midnight, sculpting plywood
into boats and brushing bright
colors on a piece of canvas.
"At first when I started with the boats [sculptures], it was very childlike and I let mistakes happen and build off them," Balbuena said. "This year, it's more structured because I don't panic as much."
When he was 13, Balbuena experienced a personal tragedy while on a boat in California. That moment remains a core source of inspiration — a sort of muse — in his work, he said.
Although it is difficult for him to talk about, it has become a fuel for his creativity. It's also therapeutic, he said.
"The image of boats has stuck with me," he said. "[But sculpting] the boats, it's healing for me."
Baliuena is the eldest of four and said he feels responsible for his two younger sisters and one younger brother. He said he's always been connected to his family and is driven to be the "man of the house." He said he considers himself to be the guinea pig of the family, testing the waters to show his siblings what next steps to take in life.
"I care for them [and] how much of an influence I know that I am for them," he said. "And I guess being comfortable with understanding like
I'm the little test rat and reflect [on that] and show them I want them to surpass me."
Balbuena began his career four years ago at Wichita State University after moving from California. He transferred to the University in fall 2014 and said he likes the atmosphere better here.
While he doesn't show his sculptures or paintings to his siblings, Balbuena said he likes to create with them when he visits them in Wichita.
His teachers also recognize that he is dedicated to expanding his knowledge, both as an artist and as a student, whether in the studio or when he's reading assigned texts on language and identity.
"I like how open everything is here," he said. "The people and the city are overall much more open."
Burke had Balbuena as a student in the spring semester, when the class built a sculpture for the Federal Reserve Bank in Kansas City, Mo.
"Sam is a very engaged student," said Matthew Burke, an associate art professor of sculpture. "He is always sitting there thinking about something that is not immediately evident in a conversation."
Although Balbuena started in drawing and painting, he shifted his focus to sculpture because he said he felt it was more rewarding.
"[Sculpture] is more physical labor, and at the end, I'm more appreciative of it, especially touching the materials," he said. "Even though mentally I wasn't going along with it, that physical pain made it feel worth it."
"[Sculpture] is more physical labor, and at the end, I'm more appreciative of it, especially touching the materials."
SAMUEL BALBUENA Student and Artist
His instructor agreed.
"Part of the engagement for him in sculpture is that it's so physical," Burke said. "He's a very physical person, meaning that he understands the world in a kinesthetic sense. One of the roots of his intelligence is in the way that things move in the world, and the way he moves his body through space, and, this is all stuff that takes place in sculpture."
Balbuena said part of the reason he can be found working in his studio so late every night is that he feels he needs to complete a work before leaving the studio.
"I'm a little hermit here," he said. "I only go out when I feel accomplished with something."
Balbuena also found inspiration by painting outdoors near Clinton Lake and through listening to Kendrick Lamar's music.
Balbuena said he desires to learn new methods and projects.
"I just always try to learn stuff all the time, always learning how, and just learning visually, I guess," Balbuena said.
Burke said Balbuena is a persistent artist and hopes that Balbuena keeps that momentum going. Burke added that the risk Balbuena takes as an artist will further his development.
"Sam has a really high tolerance for risk and for the results for whatever he is working on, so sometimes that's failure, and sometimes that's a success," Burke said. "He has a very high tolerance for risk, and he has to keep that up."
In the future, Balbuena hopes to pursue a career in teaching at either the high school or college level.
"I want to teach one day, and being the oldest [child], that's probably what I would think would help out the most, then just helping younger kids," he said.
Burke said that whatever career Balbuena pursues, he will excel.
"Sam [is a] very responsible, very caring man, and he's a good human being."
— Edited by Rebeka Luttinger