During the opening reception of the Art of the Athlete exhibit at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, Katie Gillard, an art instructor from Beaverton, pulled me aside to watch a video. The video was taken at the studio for the Art of the Athlete summer class, offered only to a handful of Oregon student-athletes. Several athletes, working on their projects, were filmed discussing who was better: Bo Jackson or Deion Sanders. The conversation went back and forth until the camera panned to Oregon defensive lineman DeForest Buckner.
“DeFo, are you going to contribute to this?” Gillard asked him.
Buckner looked up at the camera, smiled, then looked back down at his project.
“I got one mission: finish my art,” he said, then returned to his task at hand.
Moments like this were why Gillard and Lisa Abia-Smith, the organizer of the program, nicknamed Buckner “Dr. Defo.”
Over the course of the four-week program, student-athletes learned simple art techniques, then created expressive works of art.
Abia-Smith, who headed the program all four years of its existence, was blown away by what she saw from Buckner. She said the name “Dr. Defo” originated from his passion for and patience with his pieces.
“I have never seen, even in my art students, someone focus so closely and precisely on their work,” Abia-Smith said at the opening of the exhibit on Oct. 21. “My best friend is a surgeon and it’s that same sort of preciseness.”
In high school Buckner dabbled in art, taking a few classes here and there. He enjoyed his experiences but never really considered himself artistic. For Buckner, art is a way to convey emotion.
“It’s doing something different,” Buckner said after practice on Sunday. “It’s another way to express your feelings.”
Like many of the athletes’ artwork, Buckner’s pieces portrayed themes of family and culture. One of his pieces, a collage titled “Roots,” features the seal of American Samoa surrounded with maps of the Hawaiian and Polynesian islands from which Buckner draws his heritage.
“He was very concerned with making sure that the flag was there and that everyone had a place on it,” Abia-Smith said. “It was almost like a self-portrait through pictures.”
Art is also an outlet for Buckner to escape from the grind and pressure that playing a collegiate sport brings.
“It’s definitely a way to get away from everything,” Buckner said. “It’s a good way to shut everything out and focus on what you’re feeling in that moment.”
The summer program includes several access workshops, in which athletes help children with disabilities create works of art. To Buckner, working with kids was one of the most rewarding aspects of the class.
“It was great being able to put a smile on the kids’ faces,” Buckner said. “It makes a big difference in their lives and it makes it a big difference in mine.”
Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @g_amorris
Dr. Defo: Deforest Buckner finds outlet through art
Gus Morris
October 28, 2015
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