John Villanueva, Jr. may seem like just your average Bakersfield College student, but he is more than that.

Villanueva, 50, is an artist who is currently working on a mural on the wall of a store near the GET bus station in downtown Bakersfield.

Villanueva is a part-time student at BC taking a sculpture class and a Photoshop class.

Villanueva has been working on the mural since the beginning of November.

“I’ve been doing murals since the late 1980s. Most of them were on the east side of town. I saw that wall there, and I thought it would be a good idea to put something there,” Villanueva said.

“I was just looking at that wall, and I said this would be the perfect place for a mural. It’s like an artist when he sees a blank canvas; he needs to put something on it.”

Villanueva said that he usually works on the mural on weekends when he is not in class and mentioned that certain students from BC help him out when they have time. Villanueva added that it usually takes a month to do a mural, but it has taken him longer on this current one because he has had to deal with the weather.

Villanueva mentioned that a lot of people want to help him with the mural, but he is only interested in people who have experience. He encouraged people who are interested in learning how to do a mural to come join him as well.

Villanueva stated that he has been getting a lot of positive feedback about the mural.

“I am getting a lot of praise from people from all walks of life. They all think it’s about time, and that it should have been done years ago,” he said.

Villanueva said that he is planning to focus on including local landmarks on the mural. The Majestic Fox Theatre and the Amtrak station are featured in Villanueva’s mural.

“The theme I picked was because the GET bus station downtown is like a hub for people coming in from around the county. Other than something around Kern County, use the theme of using landmarks from around the city that people are familiar with,” said Villanueva.

“A lot of people so far have been telling me they are familiar with the subjects that I chose.”

Villanueva said that his favorite mural is the one he did across the street from Kern Medical Center.

Villanueva has a background in art. He worked at Channel 29 as a graphic computer artist for 10 years, and he taught art for the Bakersfield Police Activities League for six years. He also taught at the Boys and Girls Club and the Boy Scouts of America as well.

Villanueva said that as a artist he wants to achieve immortality and leave something behind.”The artwork that you produce, that’s your legacy right there,” he said. “My artwork around the community or what I do for other people, that’s my legacy right there.”

Villanueva said that he has received scholarships and recognition in the community but says it isn’t about that.”For me, awards . it’s not my thing. It’s not why I became an artist,” Villanueva said.

Villanueva’s favorite artist is Vincent Van Gogh because he likes his style. Villanueva comes from a family of artists; his brothers were all artists.

Villanueva has some advice for anyone interested in doing any kind of art.

“I would suggest that anyone research your subject matter before you dig into it. That way you get really more into it,” said Villanueva.

Villanueva’s artwork can be found on myartspace.com, just by typing in his name.