Advisor: Jason Paradis

From Out of the Mist

I have always been a person with a one-track mind. I do what I want, when I want to, and I don’t wish to explain why. People would ask me why I would make a certain painting, or draw a specific picture and my answer would always be because I wanted to. With this project, I was able to grow in not only my visual style but also in my conceptual reasoning. I am now able to add depth to my work that had always been a struggle. This show is a culmination of my artistic development over the course of the past couple of years. I began breaking away from the idea that my art had to be illustrative or representational and let it develop into abstraction. This work focuses on the creative process itself. Each mark has a purpose. I put all of my emotion into the mark-making. My subjects focus on the “beauty and tragedy of life” and the interesting dichotomy they create. To do this, I needed to expand on the types of materials I was using, resulting in mixed-media. The depth in these pieces cannot be absorbed within a single glance; there is more than meets the eye. Each piece uses a different construction material as its surface. Construction material is also woven into the medium of the work. I wanted to create art with unconventional supplies with the idea that I could turn rags into riches. With this series, I break boundaries and rules I had previously set for myself and my art.

Each piece has its own subject under the umbrella of “the beauty and tragedy of life.” For example, my piece Floating Weightless focuses on the power of water and how it can be healing but also very dangerous. It gives life and it takes it, too. There is a duality to each piece that brings light and dark energy to the work. I chose to work with this theme as it reflects the conflict I feel within myself and my life. There seems to always be a constant shift between good and bad that has influenced my art directly. I see duality in everything, even when other people don’t see it. 

The work collectively was a process of emotions. Whatever I was feeling at the time came out in the visual aspects of the work and affected my mark-making. I would repeatedly hammer nails, scar the surfaces with a Dremel, and break plywood with my hands. This is seen the best in my last piece 8 Second Ride. The piece is centered around my parents’ recent and very volatile divorce. It represents their marriage, how it fell apart, and how it has affected them. Through the creative process, I show how their marriage affected me.

Close up of “Wild West”

Process and mark-making has been a central aspect of this work. When I first began experimenting, I only used oil pastel. I became increasingly focused on the mark itself and less on the semantics of the overall work. Soon I asked myself “what else can I make a mark with?” Could a mark be made with non-conventional art materials? Where could I find new things to work with? I’d go to the hardware store and wander around just to see what I could use as a surface and what I could use as materials, finding plenty to experiment with. The experimentation that I was able to do while working on this project is what makes each piece unique. I was able to turn ordinary construction materials into unconventional and unexpected art pieces. I began expanding beyond the surface’s borders, adding metal attachments, and breaking surfaces to create irregular shapes. 

It was very important to me to display this all together in one space. The exhibition was held at the Tabler Center Art Gallery from November 30th to December 10th, 2021. Properly displaying  my work in a professional setting made this series come alive. The white gallery walls and spotlights created the perfect atmosphere for displaying my body of work. While I had my reception, I was asked what my favorite piece was. Although I do have my preferences, the installation of all the work together was my favorite. Seeing the series as a collective was an emotional experience. Once I arranged the works properly and they were hung, I knew they could not be displayed any other way. 

Gallery Reception Photos