East Oregonian 119th YEAR, No. 45 4 SECTIONS SATURDAY, DECEMBER 11, 1993 30 PAGES 50 CENTS Pendleton High School junior Mike Tolman picks up some paint- inq tips from Seattle artist Blair Wilson. Wilson, a 1985 PHS graduate, returned to the classroom where he got his start to teach current students about his own brand of art: squiggilism. Curly cues of color Native son returns to PHS to teach art By MARINA SWAIN of the East Oregonian PENDLETON - Most of Blair Wilson's paintings start out as puddles. But it's his special brand of alchemy with paint, paper and water that turns his moist compositions into surrealistic art. "It excites the eye," said Wilson, 26 "It's like an explosion you don't know what it's going to do." Wilson, a 1985 Pendleton High School graduate, was back in town this week to talk about his work in the very classroom where he got his start. Art teacher Dave Remington invited the young Seattle artist to give a one-week crash course in squiggilism. That's the name some of Wilson's friends dubbed his funky blow-up shapes, which cavort in tight chaotic circles across his canvas. "It's like a whole cast of characters," said Remington. "It sort of becomes like a kind of calligraphy or hieroglyph. It gives my students a new visual language to work with." Remington had high hopes for Wilson, who showed early promise with a paint brush, helping him secure a competitive art scholarship at Western Oregon State College in Monmouth. "He showed great natural ability when he was in my classes," said Remington. "I think it's flattering that he would do this, that he would come back." on Wednesday, Wilson sat down with his water and acrylic paints - and an audience. A classroom-full of advanced art-students watched as Wilson put his paint brush through the paces. Dipping his brush in water he first formed a translucent outline on paper, before nudging a dab of red or yellow at its edges. The paint then flowed toward the center of the water-formed shape, leaving behind a dark-to-light spectrum of color. The end result was a series of shaded tubes and spirals, like colorful tunnels wriggling against a white back-drop. "You make one line and the rest makes itself," observed PHS junior Mike Tolman. "It's unpredictable. Usually when it's unpredictable it turns out better than when you planned it." Tolman's own attempt at squiggilism was less defined and darker. Striking the right balance between water and paint is the tricky part, Wilson acknowledged. He showed the students how to pick up excess water with a dry paint brush. A soft-spoken man with long dark hair pulled back into a pony tail, Wilson seemed at ease teaching in a classroom where he once received instruction. But he admits he was too, shy to imagine such a scenario when he was a student. "I was a real loner, real quiet and introspective," said Wilson. "A couple of years ago I couldn't have done this. I would have frozen up with nervousness." But for students like Tolman, Wilson's artistry is overwhelming, overshadowing his reticent personality. "I want to be an artist," said Tolman. "When I saw how good he was I realized what I've learned already isn't near good enough." Wilson's trip to Pendleton was sponsored by the Education Foundation of Pendleton, which paid him $750 for five days of teaching.