OMAHA, Neb (KMTV) — Summer of 1923, horses and heavy equipment teamed up to move dirt in preparation for a $430,000 project in Lincoln called Memorial Stadium.
To commemorate the stadium's 100th anniversary, Elkhorn-based artist Ashley Spitsnogle has spent weeks on a commissioned piece. 3 News Now visited her studio to get a sense of how she brings a technical piece to life; made more special given that Spitsnogle is a lifelong Husker fan.
"My mom, the other day, was saying that I started (painting) at three," Spitsnogle said, continuing, "I grew up a big Husker fan with my family."
"We do a whole get-together hours before (games); it's a whole experience of just being together," she shared.
On painting Memorial Stadium: "There's just a lot of measurements — and a lot of details."
It takes Spitsnogle a month and a half.
Though sports art isn't the extent of her work, it has provided for unforgettable moments. From forging a friendship with Johnny Rodgers — which she describes as "really cool" — to how "special" it was to paint for the Berringer and Foltz families.
Timelapse technology has made it easier for Spitsnogle to share her work online.
"People just started interacting a lot more, they started sharing it a lot more."
How her art resonates and affirms that what she creates isn't about her, but how others experience it perhaps even 100 years from now.
"When I'm painting, even though, sometimes it takes a long time, I'm thinking of the end goal of how it will affect people or what memories it will bring up for people," she said. "You know, I'm not here anymore but my paintings are still able to do that for people."
Prints of the piece featured in the story will be available online.
Spitsnogle's next Husker-related project is tied to Volleyball Day in Nebraska.
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