Professional Practices (ART 399)

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Welcome to My World

Sarah McCann

My work revolves around two dimensional drawings on small 9”x12” smooth Bristol Paper. In a sense I’m more of a traditional artist; I prefer to use Prismacolor Pencils, Watercolors, Copic Markers, Micron Pens, and White Gel Pens in my art. Not only have I created lots of drawings, but I have also painted a bit; about a year ago I had a piece put up on display at an Art Center in my hometown called the Glema Mahr Center for the Arts. Quite recently I have been into Digital art; I like to use the free software known as GIMP to color over drawings I have scanned onto my computer. My thought process before I put my pencil to paper usually revolves around what I’ve recently watched, it’s pretty weird but when I watch a show my inspiration to draw starts to shine.

I really want people to recognize my work, by noticing my style and knowing that I like to draw a lot of Fan Art. My personal Art Philosophy is to draw whatever you want, don’t let people tell you what to draw during this day in age. Art is Art, and with a lot of hard work it’s beautiful no matter what it is, because it’s yours. A couple of people who have inspired me are Katy Lipscomb, Aaron Blaise, and an artist on the Website DeviantArt known as WildSpiritWolf.

WildSpiritWolf was the first artist who got me interested into drawing animals, and mainly wolves. Her FAQ (frequently asked questions) came in handy when I didn’t know where to start with my art, I was introduced to shading, micron pens, and prismacolor pencils from her. Katy Lipscomb was another artist on DeviantArt that I met a while back and is a friend of mine, her art is so vibrant and colorful, she introduced to me the idea of using watercolors as a base before coloring an entire drawing with Prismacolor Pencils. And Aaron Blaise gave me the push to draw more human figures and to add cartoon characteristics to them along with animals, and also to start drawing digitally.
Siany Riegger

Siany Riegger

What viewers should be able to see in my artwork revolves around the concepts of the sublime and of nature in general. I am inspired by wildlife and encountering new birds on trips and am curious about the idea of nature in my work. For example, a painting that was done for an art history class in Baroque, depicts a robin on a branch, which is supposed to represent humility and how humans can look to nature as something of reverence. In terms of sublime, I create artwork about monsters and use compositions with unsettling conceptual themes or aesthetics. As far as a specific medium goes, I work mostly with oil paint on canvas.

My work Inner Demons was a response to The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters by Francisco Goya. It emulates the sublime and the idea that certain thoughts, or lack of, can create personal monsters within. Another work like this is a painting that incorporates the use of complex color schemes by having intense red and green artificial light with clashing same colored objects. The colors in the composition are what convey the idea of the sublime due to the eerie nature that is typically associated with red and green.

Some of the paintings made more recently have been utilizing the sublime in nature by using the theme of predator and prey. One of these works in particular, depicts a display where 2-D painted versions of origami birds are placed in a naturalistic setting. Some of the prey birds are seen floating in the water, while others are hanging by strings to mimic flight. Meanwhile, a naturalistic representation of a hawk is in the process of swooping down to tear apart one of the inanimate birds in the water. By using the theme of “survival of the fittest” in my artwork, it bridges the gap between horror and nature to create the sublime, a more complex theme.
Pro Prac Bailey Roman

Bailey Roman

My preferred media is oil paint on varying objects and ink drawings. The subject matter is drawn from life or studied then imagined later in the studio to add a creative and unnatural feeling. Through the use of vibrant fractal shapes dissipating from the subject to captivate the viewer’s eye. I also take the liberty of using influences of pop artist, American Realists and Golden Age comic book art, I use the two periods and synthesize them into a more contemporary anatomy study. I really enjoy the dynamic and thick lines in both comic book illustrators and pop artists but crave to have a naturalistic sense of proportions that give my subject a unique personality. The use of color in my pieces are extremely saturated and draw a lot of inspiration from conceptual artists such as Tyler Lockett, Sun GuoLiang and Emmanuel Malin. In more recent works I have pushed myself to be more experimental with my use of media i.e. using coffee as a substitute for paint thinner or painting on the back side of a panel to force more layers and dimensions throughout the works. The messages in my work varies but are not limited to; social critiques on the view of intelligence, a discussion of domestic violence in relationships, the visual effects of stress and how one views the world, and an exploration of glyphs and how they can apply meaning in relatively mundane objects (such as billboards) and their catalytic nature in self evaluations.
Dialogue (Bridged)

Anna Sohl

Human beings thrive on communication and strive to connect with others in many ways. In spite of our desires or best efforts, communication and connection sometimes falls short of perfect clarity. Our interpretation of a person’s nonverbal cues may fail to match what they are saying, and words left unspoken can create voids and barriers. I find significance in our miscommunications, misinterpretations, and our difficulty connecting with one another. This work explores how domestic objects can influence the dynamics of a conversation and are witness to our communication with one another.

My current body of work explores interpersonal communication and relationships represented through domestic objects. I seek to illustrate the way communication can change as it is transmitted from one person to another, and the voids created through the absence of words. This occurs most poignantly in our home lives, where clear communication is often most critical to our happiness.

Furniture also directs us to interact with others in a certain manner. The spatial arrangement of furniture may determine the flow of a conversation. When a conversation between two people shifts, the individuals either gravitate closer together or stay at a reasonable distance. These objects are stand-ins for ourselves. We are individuals with unique characteristics, just as any handmade object. No piece is exactly alike and has its own personality.
Mind Collage

Rebekah Nichole Thuline

I illustrate images that dive into different ideas but roughly stay around a few basic themes i'm drawn to. These themes link to either play with color theory, phycology, or images that take on a certain topics such as food, animals, nature, that mix together to create either an unusual narrative or a simple image. I prefer to create illustrations with ink pens, but I will also work with other materials such as pastels, charcoal, graphic and even digital mediums.

Some of the inspirations for these works go back to artists Salvador dali and Rene Magritte. Both surrealists that painted strange images that narrate a story or emotion or an idea from their mind with interesting color pallet choices. This alone has always interested me for years. When an image pops into my head I want to do my best to draw it out for everyone to see. I'm not ashamed by my imagination but proud to express the creative thinking process I go through and adding my own personal meanings to them. Just goes to show how the mind wanders.
Ana's Exhibition

Ana Wahlers

Artist Statement

I make fantasy inspired scenes that are naturalistic. This means the scene itself isn’t realistic, just the bodies or individual forms. Everything else is just various things put together that you wouldn’t normally see together. That way the scene is comprehensible, but you also can’t say, “That’s not accurate”. Real everyday scenes are kind of boring because there’s nothing to invoke an emotion in me, so I like to bring things that can only exist from the human mind into the picture. For example, I’ve done a few scenes of monsters or figures in a house or room. The only thing out of place is the monster, but by adding a recognizable background it gives it context. And by using fantasy I’m able to not only convey a certain emotion, but also make it unmistakable by having it be somewhat of an extreme scene. These scenes are usually dark and desaturated, and while I try to stay true to the image in my head, I also make sure the image is balanced and has emphasis on the source of the emotion.

Most of my drawings originated as passing images in my head with certain emotions tied to them. Overall, I'm just trying to enhance my ability to create atmospheric images. I try to be sure everything looks like they’re in the same place and aim for the work to make it easy for the viewer to imagine themselves in the picture. Another place I find inspiration is my dreams. I tend to feel things more strongly in them, so I try to see if it was just a feeling during the dream or the situation in the dream that gave me the emotion. I’ll recreate the scene on paper and see if it gives off the same reaction.

I’ve been trying to figure out how to improve my style and found an artist named Bobby Chiu. I liked his style conceptually and visually. Especially how, despite the creature obviously not being real, the lighting and background makes it easy for you to imagine them in front of you. The only thing that stopped me from achieving something similar was the fact that I relied on outlines. I finally stopped focusing on them recently and photoshop helps a lot in this regard. It achieves visual affects you normally struggle to get with traditional media such as fog or blurs. I don’t really use all the tools in the program, I use it like a pencil or paintbrush, but more convenient and less messy. I do everything from scratch; it all starts as messy lines that progressively become a picture.
Glimpses

Eriko Whittaker

As a painter, I have always been intrigued by the relationship of color, shape, and composition. While my work mostly consists of oil paint on canvas, I also use acrylic paint, gesso, and wood stain. My work evolves with that of my immediate surroundings, taking daily, ordinary scenes of life and how light and color can affect the visual reading of a scene. My work shifts between a continuum of abstract and realistic work, a painting being either non-objective, abstract, or representational. I find great inspiration in ordinary, everyday scenes and objects, ranging from interiors, nature, social, and urban scenes. I often shift between abstract and representational work because while I greatly enjoy the freedom and spontaneity of abstract work, I equally enjoy the structure and study of representational work.
Fall 2018 Professional Practices

Claire Wilson

While still being a college student, I have used many different practices to create artwork, differing from woodworking to metalsmithing and my emphasis, graphic design. However; the voice of my work always calls back to the theme which I feel the most connected to not only in my art making process, but also throughout my life as well. I believe nature and being outdoors is one of the keys to creating a happy life for ourselves – and is the place I feel most heard, comforted, and accepted. A hike through the woods or a day paddle boarding across the lake always brings solace and is able to still and refocus my mind. The calming effect of nature then is what translates to all of my favorite works and reappears no matter the media I am employing.

Some of my works that deal with this recurring theme include an embroidery series of photographs that include my favorite places I have travelled heat transferred and then stitched over to emphasize individual elements of the landscape. When presented, its ideal location would be hanging from tree branches so that the viewer must take a step into a serene, outdoor location to view them. Another piece that demonstrates this is one of my most recent works, a band saw box created in the shape of a tobacco leaf, which represents the landscape where I spent my entire childhood. This theme not only translates into 3D materials, but into my graphic design projects as well. Here I often use simple patterning that include natural elements such as hand drawn leaves and flowers.

My overall vision for my work would be for viewers to see my pieces and it draw them back to their favorite moments they have had travelling, or where they played outside as a child. That the small moment they spend viewing my work would take them back to a time they felt they were less stressed and carefree – and hopefully demonstrate that I believe these feelings can be brought back by spending time quietly enjoying nature.

I believe my work fits in with contemporary art by relating to the current crisis to stop global warming. While not directly speaking to this issue, my work showcases the beauty of the natural world and could encourage others to do their part in keeping it clean for the sake of humans and animals alike. My work also reflects on that of art throughout history. Ancient people believed parts of nature to be gods and would create entire ceremonies around natural events such as rain or a good crop season. The theme of the importance of nature has been demonstrated since the beginning of art being recorded and we should hold onto that standard to continue.

To conclude, I believe spending nature is one of the most important factors for happiness in our lives and this for me continues into every medium of my work. If I am able to make viewers stop their hectic lives for one moment, and remember a calmer time or time they have enjoyed outdoors then we as a society would be able to come together again and create positive change not only for our environments, but for our own lives as well.
Yiyang Xie

yiyang Xie

Artist Statement

Yiyang Xie

In my freshman year, I studied photography, broadcasting, acting, sports and drawing. I discovered what I liked, and what I did not like. When I go to a fiction show. This show is you can use the artwork which made by this artist to create a photo which is not the same in the real. I saw a lot of people were happy at that time. I realized that an artist can bring happiness to people. After that, I decided to be an artist, because an artist is a magical being.

Most of my artwork is made by using a pencil. I can easily use it to draw and using my hands is important in my artwork. I can immediately draw the whatever I want with it. First of all, I create the idea in my mind. And then, I will draw the idea’s draft. After the exploration of my draft drawings. I will choose the best one and start to draw my final piece.

Currently, my art making includes Drawing, Metal, and Design. I use a variety of pencils to complete my drawing work. I learned basic metalsmithing skills this semester and I will continue to use these skills in my artwork. I also started computer based design this semester and can easily incorporate Photoshop and Illustrator into my practice now. I want to use different and cheerful color to create a happy world. I hope my work can show the beautiful world to the people who are unhappy and depressed. I hope they can know how beautiful and wonderful this world is! I this modern city, more and more people we meet. However, we have less and less friends. I feel the happiest time is my childhood. That is a colorful time in my life. Thus, I decided to create a colorful city for people who lose the color in their life.
Supernumerary

Ethan Best

For me, art is centered on shifting perspectives, the analysis of communication and the impact of art on our society. It is a reflection of a cultural collective consciousness; manifestations of a collection of beliefs and worldviews that function both as a time capsule and as a direct line into the world of ideas. I create work that is fundamentally founded in personal exploration and interpretation of the artwork at hand. Each piece is, in essence, a catalyst for discovery. For this reason I use a largely minimalist approach in creating objects that have a strong phenomenological presence and have any and all meaning compressed into openly-interpretable visual cues. Narrative is only determinable through heavy investigation of the piece, and even then is largely subjective. There is an emphasis on untranslatability; an inability to fully understand outside of personal experience and interpretation. While some preconceived meaning is inherited through the use of visual metaphor, the intuitive patterning of the metaphor is obscured due to its vagueness or the further layering of conflicting patterns. Furthermore, the context from which the iconography is drawn from varies greatly.

Whether it be literary and philosophical references or from TV and internet culture, all imagery is of equal of importance. They blend together creating a sense of unsure, uncomfortable half-familiarity. While the art itself is confounded and is relative to the viewer, that does not mean that it is meaningless. Meaning is instead inscribed by the context of the work from the spectator's perspective. This oscillation between investigation of predetermined meaning and objective non-meaning is meant to give the work a sense of sublime absurdity. The spectator is fully free to investigate and form their own opinions on what the work is and what it means, and, therefore, are entirely responsible for those beliefs.
Thoughts and Rambles

Leslie Buhrmester

My work is rooted in the here and now of my mind. The emotions I am feeling, the shows I am watching and music I am listening to all play a large role in informing my artwork. In my “From Birth to Death” photographs, I thought about how quick a sun sets and in relation how quick our time on earth is. I wanted to put the two together to represent that idea. I enjoy playing out these ideas and whimsies.
Reflective Interactions

Isabella Cardozo

My paintings are concern the exploration of light and transparency as it interacts with the figure and objects. I am interested in the exploration of reflective surfaces as they interact with the figure and each other.

By recreating the figure as it interfaces with the transparent surfaces and the light, i can examine the idea of breaking up or splitting the body as a way to understand and maybe communicate anxieties that concern the body.

Formally, I am interested in the play of transparency and reflection and recreating the bright colors that these objects form as the light passes through them, and aim to depict them with as much detail as possible, varying my brushstroke thickness and the amount of paint applied.
Final Portfolio Assignment

Shelby Clark

- “Art, should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable” (Banksy.)

I feel the power of art is derived from its ability to allow otherness to be addressed, encouraging the viewer to engage with topics that are ignored or difficult for them. Art is the platform for my critique of society.

My work focuses specifically on my personal experiences relating to the “F” word.

Female.

“1 a (1) : of, relating to, or being the sex that typically has the capacity to bear young or produce eggs
- In a field of milkweed, I watched a female monarch butterfly deposit a single egg on the underside of a leaf. —Tom Tyning
- A few months later, she became the highest paid female performer on the Great White Way. —Susannah McCorkle
(2) : having or producing only pistils or pistillate flowers
- a female holly
- female inflorescences
b : made up of usually adult members of the female sex : consisting of females
- the female workforce
c : characteristic of girls, women, or the female sex : exhibiting femaleness
- composed for female voices
- a female name
d : designed for or typically used by girls or women
- a female glove
e : engaged in or exercised by girls or women
- female suffrage
2 : having some quality (such as small size or delicacy of sound) associated with the female sex
- female castanets
3 : designed with a hollow or groove into which a corresponding male part fits
- the female coupling of a hose
— femaleness noun`` (Webster.)

Feeling bound to use the “F” word as my label, is a perfect example of the otherness that drives my work. I create wearable props that exaggerate and imprison my figure, drawing attention to the restrictions I feel placed on me for just being female. External stimuli like advertising images and day-to-day life interactions provide the inspiration for these objects. I look at artists like Nick Cave and how his soundsuits fuel the viewers senses without preconceived judgment, by eliminating identity.

During this journey as a woodworker, I have been trying to push the preconceived notions that I have created about the material. It is my goal to attack the boundaries of wood through the incorporation of varying, unconventional materials, as well as the concept of what wood can be used for.

There are endless possibilities to all things and what an artist may do. It is only now that I have begun to find what I’m passionate about, my mind has been opened to the possibilities of creating work that challenges me.
Final Portfolio/ Digital Commons Assignment ART 399-01 SP17

Troian Cummings

My body of work is based in nature; it deals with concepts of comfort, discomfort, and in shared human perception and emotion. The malleability and durability of metal reflects my desire for control while its unpredictability aids in my desire to emulate nature. I am drawn toward natural elements because of my upbringing in Yosemite National Park, where nature is life. It is inevitable, when you live in such a natural place, that you see nature as art. Also, I have always been very aware of my thoughts and feelings in comparison to others. I have a tendency to tell myself that everyone must share the same feelings and self criticism that I do, though I know now that it’s not true. Even so, there are some shared internal struggles that we as humans collectively experience go through and the root of my work comes from this locus... I begin with a fairly loose plan and let it evolve and mature as the project proceeds. In it’s own way, it is a natural growth process, almost meditative in nature. Through this method I aim to emulate the perfect imperfection of nature. I also want to create some of the feelings of human life and the struggles that come with it.

Despite being attracted to the tranquility and peacefulness of botanical forms, I am also interested in pain, danger, and discomfort—the darker side of nature. I am interested in the tension between these two elements of experience; beauty and pain. I am drawn to these darker qualities in the Body Art of Vito Acconci and Chris Burden. Acconci’s Following Piece in which he followed a person around until they became uncomfortable as well as Burden’s dangerous and semi-masochistic pieces like Shoot, a performance during which he was shot by a friend in his arm, are two in particular that have influenced me. In my pieces, I want to evoke some of these same primal feelings, like heightened anxiety or the feeling of being overwhelmed. I emphasize these feelings by using colors that while naturally occurring are perceived to be acidic or poisonous.

When people interact with my art, I want them to feel a sense of promnesia, comfort, and slight disturbance- all at once. In some small way I want my work to make people take pause to think about their connection to everyone and everything around them. I want my art to make people question their surroundings and feel the need to become more self and globally aware.
Pro-Prac Retrospective

Matthew Hahnes

In my own life, I find myself the most contemplative when surrounded by white noise, when I am in the shower or doing laundry; that constant audio static acts like a barrier and allows me to more easily recede into my mind. I imagine the inner mind like a cave, no two are similar, as caves twist and break through the underground landscape they secret away more than we can discover for ourselves, caves are naturally occurring yet are largely unexplored. I investigate this metaphor by generating my own cave openings and spaces to try and impose a feeling of contemplation and isolation on the viewer through visual clues, usually vestiges of human occupation.

In my printmaking process, I create a composition that gives a sense of vastness or spaciousness within seemingly smaller objects to represent this mindscape and placing the figure or a symbol for it within to add to the sense of scale. I’m fascinated with combining a visual interpretation of the brain’s environment and activity within the context of daily activities or environments filled with background noise, the static moments of life. I want to invite the view to contemplate the small periods of dissociation where we cease to be ourselves doing the activity, be it laundry or waiting in the elevator, and exist solely within our minds, thinking, conversing, imagining but ultimately denying the social factor of our own humanity. In those small moments we all exist on the island inside our mind, alone.

In my sculpture work I use the anonymity of constructive materials like sheet steel and treated lumber to pull away the visual noise of logos, design, and color to imbue objects with a brooding quiet. Through sculpture I want to focus on “lonely objects” that are representative of our globalized market and growing speed of international exchange, objects that exist “everywhere” in replicated form and what that means for our interactions with these objects. I think of “lonely objects” as objects that are tucked away in corners or left alone and vacant more of the time than not, such as a vending machine: it stays on always, available always to be interacted with whether that be a positive interaction or not yet that interaction is over in minutes and especially at night there are long hours of electricity and availability seemingly wasted for lack of people.

Focusing on how our relationship to the internet and media affects our consumption of art is key to my process and relating to a larger audience of non-art makers and communicating more effectively. I use saturated flat colors to create a visually interesting composition that will draw the viewer into my piece anticipating something immediately happy or pleasant only to feel a creeping sense of foreboding from the cave or object. I think pushing these aspects of these two main structures can invite the viewer to think about how we interact with appliances and how we demand the constant availability of the internet and social media yet interactions are small and isolated over texts, posts and memes.
Final Portfolio/ Digital Commons Assignment ART 399-01 SP17

Caitlin Hemenway

Caitlin Hemenway

Artist Statement

BFA 2016-2018

In my current work, I am composing delicate forms in expansive spaces. These forms are meant to have a figurative presence. The space, having a tangible quality, then also becomes a subject. I wish to communicate that both space and form have an equal weight. I give voice in my work to the inward emotions of the figurative presence, in a moment of vulnerability, in a space that is unfamiliar.

When I choose the subject for my paintings and drawings, I pay attention to the textures as wellas the colors of the object. Currently, I look to Baroque paintings and sculpture for reference to texture. In those works, drapery is expressive in its gesture and the presence it possesses, depicted by the artist as existing in a given atmosphere. However, the spaces I create in my work are equally inspired from observed horizons, much like the work of Martin Johnson Heade. In resemblance to his work, I use soft edges to soften and unite the form with the space. I also establish hard edges for strong communication of lights and darks as well as scumbling to scatter shadows and light both within the space and form.

The purpose of my work is to communicate the fascination of a space and its emotional effect on those that view it. As the spaces I create surround these delicate forms, I seek to create a feeling of solitude and mystery, expressed as the vulnerable forms are embraced by their surroundings.
Professional Practices (ART 399)

Madison Henderson

I’ve always had a passion for art and design as well as assisting those with mental and physical disabilities. When I was searching for a career in the arts and I discovered Art Therapy I knew I had found my calling. Art has always assisted me through my life experiences. I want to be able to help those with mental and physical disabilities do the same.

The major inspiration for my work is being able to assist individuals with mental and physical disabilities and seeing their everyday struggles and how they overcome them, that your typical individual would take for granted. My art can be vague and mysterious with what I am trying to communicate. I want the viewers to be able to observe my work and discover their own meaning.

I am more drawn to art where the meaning is not immediately clear. Abstract art has always interested me. With abstract art, you can find new and inventive ways to express things, those things could be very simple but made to look more complex and intriguing. Also with abstract art, the work must speak for itself and allow the viewer to decide.

I try to find inspiration for my work in everything that I do and see. One artist that has always been an inspiration to me is Jackson Pollock. He put his whole self into all his work. If something of his fell out of his pocket or he had to stand on his piece to get at the correct angle, he would leave whatever fell out and he would even include his footprints. That’s how I want to be with my work, and all the individuals that I work with. I want to put everything I have and that I am into my work.
Final Portfolio/Digital Commons Assignment ART 399-01 SP17

Shelby Horton

My work is inspired by global warming, while focusing on the relationship between humans, nature, and honey bees. The relationship between humans and bees is complex and has been cultivated for centuries. Depending on the nature of the interaction, this can illustrate the potential destruction of the environment when the complexity of a relationship is taken for granted, or it can illustrate the potential for a symbiotic interaction between humans and bees that not only helps improve and maintain the health of the earth, but that also benefits humans in ways that transcend the collection of honey. By depicting the cooperation of humans and bees, it’s possible to begin breaking down attitudes and stereotypes that pit people against nature. In particular, pollinating insects that are considered dangerous, pests, or expendable. This offers people an opportunity to understand that it is possible to develop a relationship that meets the needs of humans, bees, and the ecosystem; and how symbiotic relationships can be cultivated in other contexts, rather than depleting resources and leaving behind damage.

I combine printmaking with practical objects to come up with pieces that help prevent the collapse of our environment while reaching a large audience and capturing their attention. Nunzio Paci is an artist who focuses on the human condition; he makes his work on humans separating themselves from nature. He has inspired growth in my own work by showing me new ways of seeing how humans separate themselves and how he expresses those moments with his imagery. I express our own down fall with imagery of dead bees, barren environments, and human figures that are usually causing the destruction but I also show the symbiotic, healthy relationship that humans can have by supporting bee hives and growing wild flowers bees need to make their honey. I make this connection in my work by making wild flower seed packets, fit for our region, that people can take with them or making stickers with my e-mail so they can contact me for more information later. I hope that my work through its practicality and meaning will inspire others to advocate for a healthy Earth.
Shelby Horton

Shelby Horton

My work is inspired by global warming, while focusing on the relationship between humans, nature, and honey bees. The relationship between humans and bees is complex and has been cultivated for centuries. Depending on the nature of the interaction, this can illustrate the potential destruction of the environment when the complexity of a relationship is taken for granted, or it can illustrate the potential for a symbiotic interaction between humans and bees that not only helps improve and maintain the health of the earth, but that also benefits humans in ways that transcend the collection of honey. By depicting the cooperation of humans and bees, it’s possible to begin breaking down attitudes and stereotypes that pit people against nature. In particular, pollinating insects that are considered dangerous, pests, or expendable. This offers people an opportunity to understand that it is possible to develop a relationship that meets the needs of humans, bees, and the ecosystem; and how symbiotic relationships can be cultivated in other contexts, rather than depleting resources and leaving behind damage.

I combine printmaking with practical objects to come up with pieces that help prevent the collapse of our environment while reaching a large audience and capturing their attention. Nunzio Paci is an artist who focuses on the human condition; he makes his work on humans separating themselves from nature. He has inspired growth in my own work by showing me new ways of seeing how humans separate themselves and how he expresses those moments with his imagery. I express our own down fall with imagery of dead bees, barren environments, and human figures that are usually causing the destruction but I also show the symbiotic, healthy relationship that humans can have by supporting bee hives and growing wild flowers bees need to make their honey. I make this connection in my work by making wild flower seed packets, fit for our region, that people can take with them or making stickers with my e-mail so they can contact me for more information later. I hope that my work through its practicality and meaning will inspire others to advocate for a healthy Earth.
Final Portfolio/Digital Commons

wei hu

Wei was Born in Zhejiang province, China in 1990. Wei started to learn drawing at 9 years old, he learned calligraphy and Chinese painting. During the drawing, Wei won a lot of awards. 2010-2012, Wei studied art design in Zhejiang University of Finance & Economics in China. In the university, Wei joined the Xiyu Work Studio, this an art design studio for student organizations. After 2012, Wei transfer to Murray State University and learn art/art studio, he chooses many interesting classes, like sculpture, woodmaking, ceramics, painting, photograph and so on. He got Clara M. Eagle Scholarship in 2014. Now, Wei mainly learn the contents of graphic design, he wanted to combine the Chinese design and American design to create. In printmaking, Wei tried to use Chinese countryside’s old house style; in graphic design, he often used Chinese elements, like the effect of Chinese painting, Chinese red, Chinese words and so on.
Walton Kromer: Narratives

Walton Kromer

11/1/17

Walton Kromer

Mid Degree Review

. I’ve always been driven by good stories with the hope to create my own someday. Whether it be from a movie, book, or video game, if it has the ability to captivate me, and my creativity, I’ll try to incorporate it in my work. My main focus is Illustration, mostly in either an ink or graphite medium, with the aim to create a narrative image with some semblance of storytelling. I have more than a soft spot for the realm of science fiction. Practically everything from the entire genre has inspired me one way or another, and through that influence I honestly believe that my own work grows as a result. I take narrative inspiration from the grand stakes and unique world-building of George Lucas’ Star Wars, I seek to incorporate the deep philosophies of Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek or the diversity of ideas and concepts in Bioware’s Mass Effect series. Create my own settings that can match the beauty and vastness of the Halo universe or desolate yet immersive art styles found in both the Metro and Fallout series. Reflect on the dark concepts of the unknown from the mind of H.P Lovecraft, and incorporate sublime elements similar to the works H.R Giger contributed to both Dune and the Alien franchise.

I’ll often draw scene pieces, playing out either the most pivotal or calm of moments. The main goal I hope to achieve with the intended composition is to create a moment in time for these settings, ones that can captivate both reflect and indulge my imagination and those of others. I tend to use values and line weight to convey the various distances in my pieces which in turn creates a believable sense of space. This plays into the proportions of my work, which has both the characters and the objects I’ve put into the environment correlate on balanced and believable scale. Characters I portray tend to be at the forefront, if not the center, of the piece, as my work for the most part focuses on them and their interactions with the environment and other characters. I tend to use empty and white space very sparingly. I tend to fill up the scenes with as many elements and as much detail as possible, refining the visuals to the best of my abilities.

When it comes to deeper meanings or an overall end message that my pieces try to convey, I didn’t think there was one, at least in regards to the audience. For a long time I saw art as the way I could accomplish my goal of becoming either and animator or comic book artist so I could create my own stories. But after a bit of reflection, I began to notice a recurring theme in my work. When I dug deep enough, I found that my work had deep found respect for humanity, both its good and bad elements. The way we can be civilized and strong for ourselves and others, yet still be capable of ruthlessness if pushed to our limits. Science fiction usually depicts humans in a pivotal role, and in a way I guess my work does to. I see my art my art as a testament to how strong we are as a species, and how that strength can be used for both good and bad purposes alike.
Shinhye Kwon: ProPrac Portfolio Fall 2017

Shinhye Kwon

Artist Statement Fall 2017

Shinhye Kwon

I want to make mundane, inconsequential things special through painting. Often, trivial things do not inspire people. However, I think this can change. The trivial parts of our daily experiences affect us unknowingly. If everything in the world were perfectly orderly and nonspecific, we would have had a boring and monotonous life. The specificity of the trivial parts provides us with fun, surprise, wonder, and curiosity. For example, tooth marks on top of a pencil, the top corner of the book is folded, or nails with a manicure peeled off can cause minor empathy and humor. I create works that reclaim the trivial details in life as important.

Contemporary painter Brent Payne is among the artist who are working on similar ideas as me. Brent Payne finds inspiration from his immediate environment. He mainly works by direct observation and focuses on traditional genres such as still life, scenery and portraits. When I look at his works, he paints the marginal features of his world delicately in his own colors. His painting, Reflections (2010) depicts a reflection of the bath curtain in the water inside of toilet. This viewpoint is normally considered unimportant, but Payne makes it interesting to look at. Causing this kind of shift in the viewer’s perception of the ordinary is what I am pursuing. Brett Amory, a contemporary artist who gained broad recognition for his series, Waiting, depicting anonymous commuters he encountered in urban settings, also inspires me. His works were lauded for psychological depth and representations of alienation in contemporary society. Brett takes photographs of awkward or alienated places and then paints on canvas. I also capture trivial moments from the photographs that I take and translate it into painting. I hope to go beyond capturing the trivial part like Brett, and bring out it’s meaning through painting.

The scale of my paintings will vary. For instance, small details like paint on fingernails will be drawn largely, and the reflected light will be drawn on small scale. People do not care much about the small and trivial areas, so the scale shift will heighten attention. And because there are so many trivial parts in the world, I plan to draw several drawings on a small canvas, too. The soft, flexible nature of oil paint allows me to capture small, delicate features in my environment. I use a relatively close viewpoint that encourages me to meditate on the tiny facets of the things I am painting in an effort to cause my viewers to reflect on them as well. I do this in hopes of encouraging people to notice the trivial things in their daily lives and find meaning in the little things around them.
Life Through My Eyes

Mattie McArthur

Mattie McArthur

As a photographer, I use digital and film photography. I chose this media, because it allows me to capture memory, as well as recreate a memory. It also allows room to play with the idea of realistic and unrealistic subjects. I work with the media, because it is easiest for me to grasp, and share a concept, I create using real life, and the use of a camera allows me to do just that. I strive to create images, which speak out on topical situations, we as humans face, and create for ourselves. I practice this work by using the human body, along with research on the subject. In my photography, I start with a focus, and create a story, that will speak to the viewer as well as myself the artist.
Final Portfolio / Digital Commons Assignment Art 399-01 SP17

Taylor McCord

When I was young I was obsessed with collecting photos my family had because I knew that the moment wouldn’t last forever, if we didn’t have those photos we would be left with nothing to hold onto. After time has passed, I look back at these photographs and notice nothing is always how I remember it, yet I do not wish the images to be anything else. It is this change am confronting. It is the distortion of both the image and memory that I am confronting.

I have always been a bit of a control freak. I want to maintain my family. I want to keep us together. My grandmother once told me she wondered what would happen to the family after she and Joe Joe passed; I wonder/ed that too. They were the glue that held us together. How would we still be connected? I took this on as a personal responsibility, to maintain our connection, which why I have saves materials and images of us, in order to preserve our memories. There is no clear way to preserve the past, and because of this a layer of separation forms when the memories are no longer the same.

Documentation photography tries to control how you view something. It makes an effort to show the truth of a moment/memory, but in its efforts to do so, it too, is confronted with change. Time doesn’t wait for any of us; it always changes the way you look at something, or the way it looks.

Because time distorts both the physical image and the imagery within our mind this layer of separation forms again, between reality and the imagery, and thus creates a feeling of dissociation. This is what I am interested in, the layer of separation one feels from a memory after time takes its course. I show this by rephotographing photographs to amplify the reprocessing that occurs in our minds, and that also occurs in the distortion of an image.

In my sculpture I also show this reproduction of memory by repurposing both personal and universal symbols/materials like: dryer lint, birthday cakes, fabric, headstones, flowers, etc. I have a connection to all of the materials I use, but they are such familiar objects that people can connect with them as well. With these symbols/materials I create artificial monuments that stand in for the image home. By making these artificial stand ins for the home I’m eluding back to the separation that forms around a memory over time. How I create this artificial look is by distorting the functionality of the symbols/materials used in the sculpture. I also use video or sound to help amplify the distortion of the piece.

An artist who I’ve been looking at recently is Jennifer Loeber, specifically her project “Left Behind” which she paired old photographs of her mom, who recently passed, with photographs of items of hers she kept. There is the presence of time as the two photographs differ in look. The way she uses saved materials and photographs to talk about a loss of a loved one is what started me to think about the connection between the two.
The Graphic Design of Jason Moore

Jason Moore

Artist Statement

As a Graphic Designer the goal of most of my work is to relay information to the viewer. I try to insert as much of myself into each work that I design and draw influence from Designers such as Michael Schwab, Massimo Vignelli and David Carson. Using typography and illustration to convey emotion and personality.

My art evokes a light and airy mood through the use of minimal color, negative space and geometric shapes. The mood of my work is reflected by my personality, easy going and kind, the work is reacted to visually by the viewer in the same manner, its easy to look at and isn't imposing to the viewer. I want the viewer to take something away from the work without having to force it down their throat and use stark typography to assist in this.