“The Pumpkin Artist” 3D Pumpkin by Brandy Davis
Woah! This has been quite the Fall season! So in addition to everything else this year, Villafane Studios has asked me to be a part of their growing team. It’s still all very surreal to me….Just 4 years ago I remember sitting at home admiring Ray Villafane’s 3D pumpkin carvings on my computer screen thinking about what an amazing artist he is. I tried to mimic one of his 3D pumpkin carvings by carving my own with some old sculpting tools I had on hand from an old high school project. Although I wasn’t happy with it, I entered it into a local contest and won. A year went by, and I carved another just for fun, and a couple for friends and family. I remember seeing Ray Villafane on the Food Network and just being in such awe at his talent. The next year (2012) I really started to get serious about it and really attempt to go “gung-ho” to see how far I could push myself as a pumpkin-carving newbie. I entered a few of my pumpkins into the online Sullen/Villafane Fan Art Pumpkin Carving Contest, and ended up winning (Click here to read about my contest experience). I also took part of that season to make a few pumpkin carving time lapse videos, all in good fun.
Fast forward to 2013, and here I am, again, sitting at my computer, still in disbelief that just a month ago I actually flew on a plane (for my first time) to Boston to carve a Flo Pumpkin for Progressive Insurance….and in disbelief that I now work with the very artists I look up to (and still look up to) just a few years prior over a computer screen – and not to mention, carving PUMPKINS, of all things! Ha! I never could have predicted this in a million years!
I have said it before, and I’ll say it again – Keep doing what you love, and do it with an unselfish passion – great opportunities will come of it. To continue the journey, you must then take those opportunities and fearlessly turn them into something amazing. Keep with this method, and great things will always be in store for the future….Having said that….great things are in store – so stay tuned! It’ll be quite a journey!
Happy Carving!