Have you ever thought about how much you’ll miss Penn State when you leave? Well, who hasn’t?

There are plenty of ways to immortalize your time at Penn State: pictures, videos, collectibles, and, now, paintings of the buildings and houses you called home during your tenure in Happy Valley.

For one Penn Stater, it all started with a fun TikTok.

Gianna Russo, a senior from New Jersey, posted a video of her drawing her senior house. Her video got nearly 11,000 views, with comments asking if Russo could draw their house.

“I just didn’t expect that many people to want a painting or reach out that much because I feel like you can get it from a seller somewhere,” Russo said. “It’s nice that other Penn State people are reaching out to me to [paint their house].”

Russo arrived in Happy Valley as a kinesiology major, though she didn’t know what to do with her future degree. One of her friends was an architecture major, and as she explored it, Russo realized that path might be more up her alley.

She became interested in art at a young age. Instead of buying gifts for birthdays and holidays, she painted landscapes or houses for family and friends. Taking AP Art in high school only advanced her artistic ability.

Now, Russo has an outlet for her talent outside of class.

“It has a personal feel to it, so that’s why I was originally doing it for my family and friends and myself,” Russo said. “And people kind of want something that they can’t really get at a store, so I feel like that gets me the most views, and that’s what gets me the most business in terms of people buying things.

“People ask me to add a personal touch or put something in there, and it’ll stand out to me when I’m doing it. They’ll ask me to emphasize the number on the front or a sunset in the background or paint a cat in there, things like that. I like doing each one personalized because it’s cool and you can’t really get that with a print system.”

Russo’s most-viewed video, by a large margin, is her painting of 142 McAllister Street, which she did for an alumnus.

The house, called the “House of Pain” because the Rugby team rented it in the 1990s, was one of a handful of buildings that sat prominently downtown. It was knocked down last year to make way for a downtown parking garage, in preparation for Pugh Street Garage’s eventual rebuild.

The “House of Pain” drawing exemplifies Russo’s audience for most of her work; she estimates a 60/40 split in favor of alumni requesting paintings over students.

Nonetheless, Nittany Lion Nation is a loyal audience to target.

“I feel like I’ve hit a niche of Penn Staters because I feel like a lot of [other] people do this, but all of my business comes from people who are from Penn State,” Russo said. “And I’m doing a wedding venue for a family home, but even they’re alumni from Penn State.”

Her hobby, which is organically becoming a business, will help fund her time abroad next semester. You can check out her work or request a painting through her TikTok, @gc.artanddesign.