"My sexuality is like a drop of ink in a glass of water. It's only a little part of me, but it changes the color of the entire glass," said senior Mark Carlson.

"It's not who I am, but without it, I wouldn't be me," added the theater/art major from Denver, Colo.

His passion for art has allowed him to fully express the importance of reconciling homosexuality and Christianity. His art can be seen in the well-lit dungeon-like corridors below the Buntrock Commons where his most significant piece to date is his portrayal of Matthew Shepard, the young man who was violently killed solely because of his sexuality.

Entitled "Peace like a river," it is only from a distance, towards the library and past the telecommunications office, that you can clearly make out the face. But it is powerfully crafted and the description of his painting next to it makes the observer truly acknowledge the sorrow and hatred that the Shepard incident has brought to those who've also suffered from the same bigotry and hatred.

In many ways, Carlson has taken up the crusade for Shepard through his art. "I feel as if Shepard is a modern day Christ figure," said Carlson, as even the interpretation takes a resemblance to Christ with tears carving out paths along the bloodied face. "And I feel like I have to prove my Christianity to my Christian viewers‹and I shouldn't have to do that just Ścause I'm gay."

He got the image of his painting while watching a play in Denmark last spring and when he put it together this fall, he felt his completed project justified his initial image. "I feel like I was meant to do [this]," said Carlson. "I was at peace when I painted it, but when I had to explain it, I finally got the full force of what I was doing." And getting to that point hasn't been easy.

To be judged because of his sexuality has made Carlson recognize what it is like to be in a minority. "It has positively shaped me as a person because without it, I'd be another white, privileged male in America," said Carlson. "It has helped me to be a more sensitive and compassionate person."

Carlson pushes himself everyday to be more comfortable with his sexuality and advises those who are dealing with "coming out" to take it one step at a time. "I want to be a social activist through my art," he concluded. He is.

As we looked at his artwork in the Buntrock underground, Diana Postlethwaite, a professor of English and noted art/movie critic made a comment on one of Carlson's paintings titled, "Deliver me from my enemies," which portrays a dark spider with a vivid yellow backdrop.

"This piece has stood the test of time in the bleakness of January‹after having to walk past it everyday, I still am fascinated by it," she remarked.

The artwork is special to Carlson because it is an example of what he will be doing in the future. "I'm happy right now because I know which direction I'm going in."

"I finished the theater major last year and all I've been concentrating on since is my art," he remarked. "I'm glad it worked out this way because the art is what I want to do primarily."

And judging from the response of his viewers, Carlson has already made an impact‹people are responding to his message. Next to his painting of the spider, the description explains how even the spider is something that is one of God's creatures and Carlson asks the viewer, "whose enemy are you?" That is the question that we should be asking, isn't it? Carlson shouldn't be seen as an enemy solely because of his sexual orientation.

Maybe you should venture a visit to the underground on your way to class or to pay a phone bill. But don't look at the Shepherd painting from close up or you might miss out on the fact that Carlson's "ink" has filled the whole canvas. You need to see the big picture to truly see the beauty and reality of the painting. That goes for Mark Carlson as well.