Inez Valencia, Springs CTE Introduction to Photography and Digital Art and Design Teacher, won first place for a chalk art image of the Joker from the cover of the 1988 graphic novel “Batman: The Killing Joke” painted on the street for the Temecula Art & Street Painting Festival. She chose the image because “I am a fan of the Joker because of his dark humor. I was inspired by the comic cover ‘The Killing Joke’ because he holds a camera and I teach photography. I chose to not include the hat from Bolland’s original because the hair is more vibrant.”
She painted the image with soft pastel chalk and a brush. She worked on the image for two hours on Friday evening and most of the day Saturday, finishing three minutes before the 3 p.m. deadline. She recalled, “It was quite the challenge doing this while chasing my three-year-old daughter Rylee around because she wanted to run with the colors I needed. I had to keep her from running, smudging, and chalking over my work.”
She continued, “In the end, I rushed to fill in the background and used the side of my fist to blend it in. When I stood up I realized I had broken skin and was slightly bleeding! Not to mention it was mandatory to take down our canopies by 1:45. The sun was doing a great job that day too! I can say blood and sweat actually went into my work!”
She has had a talent for art her entire life, she said and began working for Springs in 2019. She concluded, “I’ve been extremely blessed to be a part of such an awesome department!”
