Monoculture

Author/Artist Name

James InmonFollow

Files

Academic Level at Time of Creation

Senior

Date of Creation

Spring 4-9-2021

Artist Statement

My work has its roots in structures; the regularity of structural components feel right to me and serves as a counterpoint to the visual noise of the natural world. My most recent work has focused on houses and home structures. Most contemporary houses are only a slight variation on one another, and there doesn’t seem to be too many models to choose from. The suburbs are full of sameness which can become pattern. This observation sparked my interest, so with my latest pieces I’ve been exploring this idea of multiplicity in a suburban setting, whether it be with a watercolor painting or a wooden sculpture of a house.

I’m a person who likes puzzles; I’m in love with the process of finding a solution to a problem. Similarly, I enjoy exploring the things around me to try and better understand their nature and how they exist and function. I treat my art as a practice of exploring and comprehending the world around me. This method of understanding is why I find woodworking so enjoyable; it is a medium filled with processes that require you intimately understand your material. It’s constantly checking your knowledge and testing you, and if you happen to make a mistake you’ll know immediately.

I’ve been looking at how Jerry Bedor Phillips utilizes the interaction of shadows to help emphasize the forms of his bookbinding covers and I have embraced this in my recent house sculptures as a way to maintain a simple but pronounced shape. These concepts of suburbia become apparent when looking at my work; for example in my most recent piece Who’s Helen Beck, you see the form of a house that you could see a hundred times driving through any American suburb. It’s painted a light pastel color reminiscent of pastries to imply this is a cookie-cutter form that has been dressed up just enough to be pleasing to the eye. There is also a lighting element that allows the windows to emit a soft warm glow to further assist this idea of visual comfort. I am currently working on four more similar houses to bring the topic of multiplicity deeper into the conversation my art poses.

Advisor/Mentor

Sarah Martin, Todd Herzberg, John Utgaard, T. Michael Martin

Description

My show consisted of 2 Wall hangings, 3 pedestals with sculptures, and a 12' x 8', 3 tiered platform with 23 house sculptures.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 License

Recommended Citation

Inmon, James, "Monoculture" (2021). B.F.A. Practicum Exhibition (ART 498). 79.
https://digitalcommons.murraystate.edu/art498/79