because I had the best day with you...today:)

Me and my roommates out on a farm.
We rode horses for my roommates birthday! It was fun but my horse was kind of ornery...
Deanne and me.

We are just a bunch of crazies! I love them a lot. Conference weekend was a blast. We went out to Archer and ate at Big Judd's, for Elisabeth's birthday, between sessions. And no I didn't get one of those massive burgers... Then after conference we went and rode horses. I then went home to be with my amazing family. Watched my little sister's soccer game, ate smores, woke up crepes, and picked apples. Not to mention hearing from all the apostles and our Prophet, Thomas S. Monson. It was a wonderful weekend with my family and friends. I am so thankful for all the people in my life and the guidance and happiness that comes from belonging to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Life is such a beautiful and amazing thing! Just look around at all of God's beautiful and endless creations that we enjoy everyday. I have learned that if you take time to enjoy those small but great things then you will always feel God and always feel grateful. Take the time. Enjoy the day.

I like to color!

This is where I spend my days... The lovely Spori building (the art building). I love spending time in this place. At the end of the day I walk home happy knowing that I am doing exactly what I love and will be able to carry the experiences I have had here throughout my life.
This piece is about our transition throughout life. The blue darkness represents our fallen state. The orange light represents the light of Christ. We all have the potential to be angels, to spread our wings, and return to Christ.
Oils-monocramatic. Assignment is to and portray a sense of mystery by using color.

Drawing, Drawing. Drawing.

Just some drawings from my drawing 2 and figure drawing classes:)

Figure drawing. Hardest class ever!
One of my better drawings in the class. I think I need to take it again!
Still life... I drawed it cuz I am a drawer. That is a word! Drawer!
We got to draw our shoes! I love shoes!


So I had this idea... Snowflake in your eyes. I didn't execute as well as I would have liked because it was finals week and I had to do it in like a night...but yeah this is scratch board.
Learning about light and shadow and how to turn form:)
what a hottie
I am drawing a monkey!

Media Experimentation...its a learning process

abstract chicken... just for fun
Oil lift out.
Painting on tape!
Just a green pepper? Well I happened to spend like 30 hours on this pepper. We had to pick a very simple object like a fruit or vegetable. This is called photo realism. We had to make our object look EXACTLY like the photo. Normally as artists we don't try to copy the photo but make it our own but this was to teach us to match and mix paint to get the perfect color, to look for intricate details, and to make our hands precise.
Painting on wood.
I grew up by this little, broken down Tilden store. I was very sad when a neighbor tore it down:( It might be broken down and never used but its one of those historic parts of where you live that you never want to go away. Now it is just an empty spot.
Exaggerating colors
Surreal lookin flowers. Experimenting with line and color.

The people I know...

This is the amazing Marnie Strasser. She was my roommate last semester and will be again this fall. Marnie it a great example to others and really does spread light where ever she goes. This painting was part of a 3 piece series and still needs some work but I think it has great potential. Painted in oil lift out technique.
This is my other amazing roommate Emily White! Emily has a way of lighting up the room and I picked her to paint specifically for this assignment because the color scheme I wanted to use fits her personality perfectly. Acrylic on wood.
This is an all time favorite of mine. My best friend Stephanie Turpin...with a creepy twist. The creepy part was kinda an accident but in art sometimes accidents are good things! This is not how I would normally depict her but its still a cool painting. Painted in Gouche and ink.

Crappy Photograph... but this is my best friend and old roommate, Andrea Gonzalez Barker. Andrea is one that really doesn't know how beautiful she is but really she is...:) She just got married and I miss her a lot! Painted in acrylic with oil over top.

Don't be shy now feel free to comment on my art and follow my blog. Sorry I kinda suck at blogging I just finished my 4th semester at BYU-Idaho and well... its been crazzzzzy! I am home for 7 weeks relaxing for awhile and going to work in grain harvest. Then its back to school:) Don't worry there is more to come...

bittersweet...

"Some days … the whole world seems upside down. And then somehow, and probably, and when you least expect it, the world rights itself again."

Life at best is bittersweet. As one chapter of my life closes another opens. Its different. Its new. Its intimidating. It feels upside down. Why does everything seem to change in a moment. Yet, in all reality, life has been building up to this moment for a very long time. I just didn't know it. New classes, new friends, new roommates, new job. Everything is different. At least there are a few things that I am sure of. I have finally figured out that I want major in Illustration and I am heading down that road. I am doing well in school and I am exited for the new semester. I love my art teachers. I never thought I could actually be an artist in real life. Or for a job I guess... But I have learned that I can be good enough. It might take years of practice and I might have to be a school for longer than most but its what I am meant to be. And I am sure that my world will turn right side up once again when I least expect it. Things have an unusual way of working themselves out.

Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.

So Pretty much any vacation with my family is a spontaneous adventure! Last weekend was Presidents day weekend so my family went down south to St. George, Utah. What a great change:) going from 20 degree weather to 60 degree weather! I pulled out shorts and flippty flops and put on my shades. What bliss! My grandparents live there so we spent some much needed time with them and helped them fix up their house. We then continued to Lake Powell to see Uncle's house boat and take a ride.
We arrived to beautiful calm water. Too bad it was still too cold to go swimming in. Unfortunately we were not able to take the boat out because the propane bottles were too low and by the time we filled them it was too late...:( but no worries we had a blast. We had a slumber party that night just sitting in the harbor.
My lovely sister Nicole!!
A little tribute to our little Bieber friend...

The next day when we woke up the water was anything but calm. What felt like 100 mile winds that tried to blow me off the dock. So we headed over to Glen Canyon and the dam bridge and went into the dam visitors center.
It looks a lot cooler in person than in my crappy pictures. I couldn't fit the whole dam in my dam picture.

What will you ask happened next? My Dad decides we should go to the Grand Canyon since we were so close anyway. Its only 2 hour drive to the North rim from Lake Powell. As winds threatened to blow over our car and the rain poured down we saw this Indian guy walking down the road. My brother pulled on the breaks as I started screaming at him that would could not just pick up some kind of crazy person! We did anyway and well he got in smelling quite interesting I might add... but well I guess I should have more compassion. We heard his story about how doesn't have a car and has to hitch hike everywhere. Good guy and yes I learned my lesson.
Well to continue my great story adventurous story... the North rim was closed! bahhhhhhh!! My dad says we are so close the south rim is only 2 hours away! Well on the way there it started snowing! As you can see from the photo above I did not dress for the occasion. I mean its Arizona I thought I was getting away from the freezing cold.
We're at the Grand Canyon!!!! And its snowing like crazy!!! What the.... And the story is still not over! We drove through the roads...ran into some pretty annoyed park rangers telling us to get out pretty much cuz the roads were bad. Seriously don't they know we are from Idaho. We can handle the roads. We might as well go through Vegas right! We are so close! Lets go and drive down the strip!
Vegas. On a Saturday night. Presidents day weekend. Oh boy. I was driving by the way... on the strip in bumper to bumper traffic in our beastly Ukon XL. People are rude and won't let in so you just get in their way. We were looking for a place to park and decided we would go into Caesar's palace and grab something to eat. It was really awesome but lots of really weird people. Vegas is quite the experience for girl like me that has been stuck in the mormon bubble all her life. We ran into a few strippers, a cross dresser, people handing out porn. It was interesting let me say that. Maybe late at night on a holiday weekend is not the best time to go. But I am sure in the future I will be back in Vegas. We headed back to St. George once again from the long day of traveling and got there at about two in the morning all exhausted.

Well this was not the trip that I had expected but fun the nonetheless. Just hanging out with my family was a great time and seeing new things. If your not used to how my family operates you would probably be pretty annoyed about how spontaneous and crazy my family is. I can get pretty annoyed at times but its another experience to hold in memory and laugh about. I love that that my family is willing to do anything. Drive through crazy snow storms and do anything at the spur of the moment. It never gets boring and there is never a dull moment. Sometimes we take on way to much and go a little nuts but that's the Polatis family! I love you guys!

Walking on water...well sort of :)

My awesome I-Team group! I was once again an I-team leader for the new freshman this semester and we went on a snow shoeing expedition. :)
Our cute feet!

Shoe shoeing for the very first time in my life! It was way fun!

Being at home again!

My SWEET ginger bread house that I made this Christmas!

My little sister and I got footie pjs for Christmas. After a long day of snowboarding we got into them and were walking around the Super 8 in driggs looking for an ice machine. Some random guy tells us we look like deranged Easter bunnies! Why thank you sir... so kind. Some other guy just says isn't it a little early for the jammies... ummmm no I mean so what if it is 7:30. Don't judge.

It was great being home but back up to Rexburg tomorrow! I need to get me a job!