“Creative freedom” guides Guillermo Baltazar-Munoz ’25 through art and life

Even in the whirlwind of senior year, Guillermo Baltazar-Munoz ’25 makes time to craft pottery for his fiancé, translate sermons at his church to Spanish, and help remodel his parents’ home. That’s just who he is — always building, always creating, always prioritizing family.

A graphic design major graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, Guillermo has known since fourth grade that he wanted to attend PLU. “It was also the closest school to home, only a 10-minute drive. That meant I could stay at home and continue helping my family,” he shares. PLU’s automatic admission and scholarships sealed the deal, opening the door to his college journey without adding financial pressure.

Outside of class, Guillermo keeps busy — helping with his dad’s landscaping business, volunteering at church, and working on home improvements. As the youngest of seven in a close-knit family, he loves spending time with his siblings and their kids. “We usually talk and laugh about things that are trending on the internet, goals and plans for the future, memories that we have together, or stories that happened in the past when I was a baby or before I was born. I also spend time taking care of and playing with my baby nieces and nephews.”

Amidst all of this busy richness of his personal life, he’s also thrived as an artist. 

Much like the breadth of experiences he’s had at home, he also dabbled in a variety of art media and creative expressions through school projects at PLU. “What I like about being a design major is the creative freedom,” he says. “There isn’t just one right answer.”

That creative freedom manifested in a recent project that Guillermo presented at the 2024 Dr. Rae Linda Brown Undergraduate Research and Creative Projects Showcase: a trio of delightfully quirky soda cans inspired by wacky jelly bean flavors—Buttery Popcorn, Black Licorice, and Cool Mint Toothpaste.

His artistic curiosity doesn’t stop at digital design. Guillermo unexpectedly fell in love with ceramics during his junior year. “I wanted to drop my first ceramics class because I saw that everyone knew what they were doing, while I was just trying to figure everything out,” he says. But instead of quitting, he leaned in. With encouragement from ceramics professor Steve Sobeck, he pushed through the steep learning curve.

Guillermo has since taken multiple ceramics courses and served as a teaching assistant for a ceramics class. “I’m always excited to come to class…to receive some more wise advice from Steve or a great laugh,” Guillermo reflects.

After graduation, Guillermo plans to find a job or internship in graphic design, continue supporting local churches with his creative work, and finalize his wedding plans for August. 

Guillermo’s next steps will be a continuation and expansion of what he’s already doing. Just like a ceramics project, Guillermo’s future will be shaped with intention — layering creativity, faith, and service.