Memento

 

Memento: A Memory to Hold

Brown and Green glass, twine

Dimensions: 1" x 4'' x 0.5''

 

Cabinet of Curiosity

Where the pot lands

Wood, glass sheets, plaster, wire, ink, glue, twine, air-dry clay, paper, yarn

Dimensions: 8" x 20" x 7"

 

In process: 

Figurative Bust Scuptures

 Figurative Bust Sculptures

Acta non verba

Air-dry clay, powdered pastel, ink, wood, wood stain, wire

Left sculpture: 5" x 6" x 3"  Right sculpture: 5" x 6.5" x 2.5"

Wooden stands: 15"x 8"x 10"

In-process:

Artist Statement: 

• Artist Statement. 
• Write about the work you made. Discuss the topics you selected and why. Discuss how the work visually communicates your idea. 
• Do not include your comments or details of the assignment. For example, do not state "the assignment was to...". Begin statement with what the work is about. Example, "The sculpture on the left, entitled Injustice, reflects attitudes about racism in America."
  
• Writing should be free of spelling and grammar errors. Use capitalization. 
• Writing should be efficient - do not ramble. Do not submit the first statement you write. Take time to review and edit your writing at least twice.
• Search example of student work here on the class blog to review student statements. 

Research:

The year 2022 is coming to a close and access to personal health care, specifically, reproductive rights have become even more scarce for women in the United States. Bodily autonomy is the ability to freely make choices about one's own body. The inequity of access to this necessary human right has left women across the country imprisoned by unjust laws and prejudiced, over-politicized, mass-produced beliefs. Those speaking up for women's rights find themselves targeted by the opposition, and women that fight for their basic human rights are exposed, trading in the privacy of their own lives and experiences in the hopes of not just being heard, but being listened to.

The conservative majority in the Supreme Court of the United States reared its ugly head on June 24, 2022, when it voted to overturn the landmark piece of legislation that made access to reproductive care through means of abortion a federal right. After being overturned, Roe v. Wade, became the hottest topic on any news segment, and the main horror haunting the minds of Americans, especially young women.  

https://www.theridernews.com/with-roe-v-wade-was-overturned-reproductive-rights-are-more-important-than-ever/

For generations, young women have been calling for equality, for rights, for safety, for help. Experiences are minimized, women are silenced, and victims are wrongfully shamed or blamed. Even young athletes, national heroes, are slow to be heard when their voices are challenged by authority. 

https://www.npr.org/2018/12/07/674525176/larry-nassars-survivors-speak-and-finally-the-world-listens-and-believes

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/25/us/the-metoo-moment-for-us-gymnasts-olympics-nassar-justice.html

We are living in a hyper-politicized climate. Everything-- even practices that were once generally respected human rights-- is questioned and argued. It is frustrating. It is exhausting. It is infuriating. It is depressing.

https://pastorbriantubbs.com/why-is-everything-political-and-why-are-we-so-divided/

Experimental Sculpture Collection

Texture and Scale

Paper, Wood Glue, Balsa Wood, Clear Tape, Straight Pins

10" x 0.5" x 12"

10" x 0.5" x 6"

Rhythm

Masking Tape, String, Wood Glue, Ink, Wood

Total Area Dimension: 25" x 20"

Focal Point

Balsa Wood, String, Wood glue, straight pins, ink

14" x 4" x 16"

In-process: 

Artist Statement:

These sculptures are representative of my experiments focused on the principles of scale, rhythm, focal point, and texture. I utilized balsa wood, wood glue, paper, masking tape, and black ink to apply materials in an inventive way and create experiences for each individual principle.

Water Fountain Replica

Water Fountain Replica Final Solution

Cardboard, Duct Tape

21" x 18" x 38"

Details, In-progress, and paper models

Reference Photo

Artist Statement

The process of recreating a life-sized water fountain challenged my knowledge and abilities to create an accurate three-dimensional piece using a planar material: cardboard. By visiting the reference fountain, I was able to begin the process with specific measurements and a detailed plan of action. Strenuous devotion to specifications was the reason for the success of this replica.

On Longing

Notes on Nostalgia

"What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness." - John Steinbeck

"The souvenir speaks to a context of origin through a language of longing."

Persistance, hard work, and perfection are three characteristics young gymnasts learn to value. Work ethic is rewarded with results, and perfection is always just a few steps ahead. As a kid, I centered my energy on floor rounties, new skills, and performance in the gym. Now that I am older (and very much retired) I am left with the souvenir of perfectionism and high expectations. I still feel the longing for success, but instead of the top of a podium, I set my sights on new opportunties.

"The souvenir exists as a sample of the now distant experience that only the object can evoke."

These polariods are the first pictures my boyfriend and I have together. These were taken the summer that we met, and at the time we were just friends. Unaware of my feelings for the new addition to our friend group, another one of my friends snapped the picture on the right. After she handed us that picture to see, she caught our reactions with the picture on the left. At the time they were taken, I was terrified that the pictures would ruin the platonic facade I was trying to uphold. Now, I look at them with kinder eyes and the comfort of knowing how things worked out. Unfortunately, despite our numerous attempts, neither my boyfriend nor I have been able to get the physical copies back from my old friend.
This picture of pictures is now our only reminder of that distant experience.

"The place of origin must remain unavailable in order for desire to be generated."

Being born and raised in the Natural State has trained me to seek out the freshest air. Even on cold December mornings like the one in this picture, I will take any opportunity to find a healthy dose of nature and immerse myself. While I love living in Florida, my living situation and schedule makes it more difficult to escape to a more natural, peaceful place like the ones I love in Arkansas. In my most stressful times, I am nostalgic for the cold air and rocky ground, and it is difficult to shake my desire to go home so I can do this hike again.

"Nostalgia cannot be sustained without loss."

My parents always taught me and my sisters to share. We may have grown out of our glasses and our braided pigtails, but forehead-to-forehead, my little sister and I still haven't grown out of sharing. It is not until I see pictures like these that I realize just how much time has passed. In my mind, even from a thousand miles away, we are still two young kids waiting to share our next milkshake. 

"The souvenir reduces the public, the monumental, and the three-dimensional into the miniature, that which can be enveloped by the body. "

This is one of the many screenshots I have from my senior year in highschool. My friends and I were months away from graduating, but they were living in boxes on my screen. I had never felt so detatched from my life and my future. The pandemic impacted everyone differently, and I watched the group I was closest to quietly divide and disperse. I remember realizing what was happening and frantically taking a screenshot in the hopes of protecting the memory of when we were all "together". It was strange to suddenly have every social interaction enveloped by the bounds of my laptop screen, but its even stranger how nostalgic I can be when I look back at that point in my life.